Memories of a Gardenia
by mcanna
Summary: MerDer story that has a little catch. It begins as Meredith starts her internship and Derek is in Seattle due to Addison's adultry, but everything is not as usual.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The alarm went off too early. She rolled out of bed with a grunt and started to get ready for her first day as an intern. On her way past the kitchen she poured coffee into a large travel-cup and moved along towards the car. A little maneuvering and she got all of her belongings in the correct place. Well at the hospital parking lot she parked in her assigned place and moved all of her belongings out. The main entrance opened for her with a swoosh and she was met by the Chief.

"Hi Richard" Meredith says when he bends down hugging her "or should I say Chief Webber?"

"Hi Meredith and I should say Dr Grey. It is nice seeing you again. How is your mother?"

"Fine, thank you. She is travelling."

The two makes their way towards the assembly hall and Meredith sits in the back while Dr Webber enters the stage to greet the new interns and divide them into their main specialties. He himself takes charge over the surgical interns and Meredith follows the group to the surgical floor for a first tour. When the tour is almost done she slips away into the locker room and starts changing into her light blue scrubs.

"What kind of program is this? I thought it was the second best in the states and the best on the west coast" a female voice is heard as the other interns enter the room. Meredith looks up and can see many people walking past ogling her.

"Do you know that one has Dr Ellis Grey as mother, one is a model and then we have the chick in the chair?" This is a male voice from the other side of her locker. She sighs and leaves the room tired of gossip that already started. She knew that they would talk about her as they did the last four years at Dartmouth. It was to be expected but didn't make her any happier.

"Grey, O'Malley, Stevens and Yang, conference room three."

Meredith is the first inside and chooses a place closest to the door. She watches as a guy with soft eyes and nervous smile enters followed by a pretty blonde and an Asian female. Behind them she see Dr Miranda Bailey whom she only knew by reputation. She is called the Nazi but regarded as the best resident on the surgical team.

Dr Webber looks up when he hears a quick knock on his door. His assistant Patricia pokes her head inside and announces his first visitor the new Head of Neuro, Dr Derek Shepherd.

"Welcome Derek, please come in. Have you settled in alright?"

"Yes sir, thank you sir, but I'm not used to the rain yet."  
"We have a full day but I want to update you about one of our new interns. She is choosing neuro as her specialty and will therefore spend a lot of time with you.  
"Isn't it to early to choose, it is only her first day."  
Dr Webber continues explaining why he brought it up and Derek looks at him with a stunned face.

"It will never work" Derek states.

"You will make it work."  
"No way, she should go into something easier that is not surgical."  
"Meet her, let her observe and treat her as the others and you will change your mind."

"How will she be able to observe?"  
"Just treat her as the rest and you will see."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Meredith looks at her resident and her fellow interns. They all stare at her and she can see that the Asian female is pissed off by being in the same group as her. Dr Bailey starts by introducing the trauma protocol, pagers and her five rules. When finished she looks over at Meredith and gives her a nod.

"I am here on equal terms as you are" Meredith starts "I don't expect to have any special treatment. I got in on my merits as you all did. You can call med Meredith or Dr Grey. If you have any questions ask me, don't speculate." She stares into each and everyone's eyes before swiftly spinning her chair around and wheeling out of the room towards the nurses' station. The nurses have been gossiping and stop when they see her. Therefore she knows that they have been talking about her. A doctor with gorgeous dark hair passes her and barely gives her glance.

Derek passes the nurses' station where a couple of nurses are ogling the new intern. He gets mad when thinking about having her on his team. She will probably be using her situation to gain favors. He gives her a quick glance before heading off towards his new office. He doesn't see how the nurses ogle' him.

Dr Bailey comes running out the conference room with the three interns in a tow. Meredith turns and follows their run to the elevators. When the door opens they can't all fit in so Dr Bailey just calls to her.

"The pit, ground floor" and is followed by the blonde and the guy towards the stairs. The Asian female squeezes inside the elevator along with Meredith.

"I'm Yang, Cristina Yang" she says to Meredith and then ignores her.

Meredith looks up at her and nods before continuing looking at the door and the floor guide above the doors.

Meredith is assigned to a teenager with seizures. She has been transferred from out of state since no doctor been able to diagnose her yet. Meredith is babysitting her and the girl is snotty and doesn't like having a doctor on wheels. Meredith gets call after call on 911 to her room and has to deal with everything from wishes for better TV channels, teenager magazines and whining about missed beauty-contests with some kind of gymnastics. The girl's parents want to talk to the doctor in charge and she wheels off in search for Dr Bailey. Dr Bailey sends her to find the new neurosurgeon Dr Shepherd. He is found at the nurses' station reading a chart together with an attending.

Derek is getting information about all neuro patients and lets his eye sweep across the room. The intern on wheels is entering the room and seems to be looking for someone. Dr Bailey points at him.

"Dr Shepherd?" Meredith rolls up towards him and asks.

"Yeah" he replies without looking at her.

"The parents of Miss Bryce want to talk to you. They have questions."

"Send them to my office" he dismisses her by returning his concentration to the Dr beside him.

Meredith enters the cafeteria for lunch and brings her tray to the table were her fellow interns are sitting. Yang is talking about her being related to the Ellis Grey. They all get silenced when Meredith rolls up and stares at her.

"If I didn't take an oath to do no harm I would kill my patient" she says when dropping her tray on the table.  
They stare at her and she continues.

"You are doctors, right? You all did pass your board exam, right? You all know that being on wheels doesn't have to be equal to brain damage? "She grabs a couple of fries and looks around the table at their embarrassed faces. "Just to get it all out. My mother is the Ellis Grey and she didn't help me getting into this program." She grabs her sandwich and water bottle and leaves the table when her pager goes off.  
Cristina, George and Izzy stares at each other a little embarrassed by Meredith's words. They really have been assuming that her mental capability was damaged along with her legs.  
"Do you know why she is in a wheel-chair?" Izzy asks the other two.  
"No, might be an accident of some sort. Her legs look normal, just skinnier." O'Malley comments.  
Cristina and Izzy stares at him.  
"Do you have a crush or something on her?" Cristina asks.  
George's face turns bright red.

Meredith enters her patient's room and it is all full of nurses. Katie Bryce is having a grand mal seizure. The nurses in the room asks for further instructions and she grabs the chart checking for meds.  
"Load her up with Phenobarbital"  
The nurse administers the drug but the seizure continues and suddenly the hearth stops and the alarm on the connected machines start beeping.  
"Charge to two hundred" Meredith orders and a nurse shocks her.  
"Charge to three hundred" the nurse shocks the patient again with no result.

"Charge to three sixty" still no response.

"Charge again" Meredith says.

"You are supposed to administer new dugs after sixty seconds" a nurse comment to Meredith.  
"Charge again" Meredith orders ignoring the comment.  
Kate Bryce's hearth starts beating and the machines returns to their normal frequency. Dr Shepherd comes running through the door.  
"What happened?"  
"She got a grand mal seizure and her hearth stopped."  
"You were supposed to monitor her!"  
"I did, sir."  
"I'll take it from here. Leave, just leave."  
Meredith wheels fast away finding her way to the outside. Under a tree she leans out of the chair and pukes. Cristina who saw her getting outside waits by the door. Meredith passes her on her way inside and says.  
"If you spread this around I will kill you and make it look like an accident."

Early the next morning the interns are called to a conference room. Cristina is suturing a banana while the rest of the interns look more or less like walking dead trying to stay awake by drinking more coffee.  
"I wonder why we are all summoned." Cristina says in a whisper to Meredith at the same time as Dr Shepherd enters the room.

"Good morning interns. I'm going to do something uncommon for a surgeon and ask interns for help. I have trouble diagnosing a patient with seizures. I know that you have more work than you ever believed was possible but I will give you an incentive. The intern that finds the correct diagnose will be scrubbing on an advanced procedure. Please help me. This girl will die if we don't find what's wrong with her." Dr Shepherd leaves the room with his white lab coat as a sail behind him. Meredith along with most of the interns grabs a copy of the chart. She finds her way to the library and starts to do her research. Her fellow interns are scattered around the room working on their own theories. Meredith reads the patient history one more time and suddenly she gets an idea.

"Dr Shepherd" she calls him seeing him in the elevator.  
"Yes Dr Grey" he hardly gives her look but keeps his eyes trained on his blackberry.  
"Dr Shepherd, Miss Bryce competes in beauty pageants."  
"Yeah, but we still need to treat her."  
"She fell practicing for her talent, gymnastics. What if she burst an aneurism?"  
"Are you aware that that is a chance less than one million that a minor fall can cause a bleeding aneurism?"  
"Yes sir" the elevator door closes between them and Meredith turns her chair around starting to away. "Ass" she mutters just as Cristina passes her.  
"What did you just say?"  
Meredith looks up at her fellow intern and realizes that she heard her last words.  
"Sorry Dr Yang, I didn't mean you. I meant Dr Shepherd."  
The elevator doors open again and Dr Shepherd exits.  
"Come along" he motions to the two of them.  
"Where to?" Cristina asks.  
"To see if Katie Bryce is one of the million."  
Cristina looks at Meredith with questions in her eyes and Meredith explains her theory,

At the viewing room beside the MRI there are two steps to get into the room. Derek looks at Meredith with a patronizing smile and says;  
"You will have to wait out here" and enters the room ahead of Cristina.  
The technician looks at Dr Shepherd and Yang before standing up and stepping over to Meredith with a question in his eyes. She nods gratefully and swirls her chair around. He pulls her backwards up the two steps before returning to his seat. Meredith rolls in behind him. The other two just looks at her and she ignores them looking at the screen.  
"I'll be damned. She is bleeding into her brain. It is minor but it is there. Good work doctors. See you in the OR Dr Yang."  
Meredith stares at Cristina and the retreating neurosurgeon. She swirls her chair around and rolls on her rear-wheels down the two steps.  
"Meredith" Cristina calls behind her running to try to catch up.  
Meredith just speeds up her chair and slides into the closing elevator before Cristina can catch up.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The elevator stopped in the lobby and Meredith makes her way into the cafeteria grabbing a yoghurt on her way to the patio. She finds an empty table in the far off corner and sits there eating while contemplating her options. The McBastard gave her surgery to Dr Yang. They were promised that the intern finding the diagnosis was to scrub in during the procedure and she figured it out but still didn't get the reward. On her way back to the surgical floor she throw her empty container in the bin and turning to roll towards the elevators she ran over someone's toes.  
"Sorry" she responded automatically. "Didn't see you."  
"It's OK" she heard Dr Webber respond and she looked up at him. "How is your day Dr Grey?"  
"Don't ask" she snarled.  
"What's happened? Please tell me."  
"Dr Yang got my surgery." she said before thinking. She really didn't want to complain to the chief but now it was too late.  
"Why?"  
"Yeah, that's what I am wondering as well."  
"What surgery is it?"  
"I diagnosed Miss Bryce, the beauty pageant with seizures, and Dr Shepherd gave the promised surgery to Dr Yang."  
"He did?"  
"Yeah"  
"How come?"  
"I stopped him by the elevators and gave him my diagnosis, he stepped into the car and when he came back up a minute later Dr Yang was talking to me in the hall. He asked us both to follow to the viewing room and check out the diagnosis. He and Yang went up into the room, which by the way needs a ramp, and the technician helped me up after Dr Shepherd told me to wait outside. My diagnosis was correct but he gave the surgery to Dr Yang. Sorry for my ramble. I do this when ever I get mad or embarrassed."  
"As his boss I'm ordering you to scrub in. I will come and watch the surgery as well. Your things are in the room beside the scrub-room by the way."  
"I don't want any special treatment, you know that Dr Webber."  
"I would do the same for any of my surgeons."

Meredith opened the door beside the scrub-room and rolled in. Her stuff was in place and she prepared herself before scrubbing in. She sat in her chair at the far back corner studying every one in the room, trying to calm her nerves and learning as much as possible of the pre-op procedures. Katie was rolled in and the resident strapped her into the halo before Dr Shepherd entered the room followed by Dr Yang.  
"It's a beautiful day to save life, let's have some fun." Dr Shepherd says before asking for a ten-blade.  
Dr Webber enters the room at that exact moment and steps up to the table.  
"Just watching" he says to Dr Shepherd who is looking at him with questions in his blue eyes.  
Cristina is feeling bad for being in the OR and she knows that the surgery is Meredith's but she doesn't want to miss out on the opportunity to participate. She calms her bad consciences with a 'there will be other surgeries for Meredith' and that Dr Shepherd gave her the surgery, she didn't ask for it. When looking around she sees to her surprise Meredith sitting in her chair beside a couple of residents and nurses in the other side of the room. It makes her conscience to disappear. The surgery proceeds and both surgeons at table are using a microscope to look at the brain. When Dr Shepherd has clamped the aneurism Dr Webber speaks up.  
"Dr Grey"  
Meredith looks up surprised, as does Dr Shepherd who hasn't seen her in the room.  
"Yes Dr Webber"  
"Step up here please and see with your own eyes what you diagnosed."  
Every eye in the room including those in the gallery ogles her. There is no chance that she will see anything, since her line of sight is far beneath the table. Dr Webber has a smirk in his face looking at his fellow staff. Meredith moves carefully forward controlling her chair by touching a control panel behind her elbows. Stopping a meter from the table, at Dr Webber's side, she pushes her controls again and the chair rises her up into a standing position. When fully upright she gets the chair to move into position in front of the microscope. The whole room has been following her every movement. She adjusts her height according to the microscope and looks down at the open brain. Derek has trouble concentrating on the surgery. This was something he never could have imagined. She sends him an evil glare across the table but stay where she is looking in the scope. He continues the surgery and as soon as he is finished he asks the resident to close. Dr Webber leaves the room after Shepherd and they stand side by side behind the glass-window looking at Meredith.  
"I told you that she could do this. Don't make me hear that you discriminate any of our surgeons again."

Inside the OR Meredith and Cristina are on opposite sides of the room. When the last stitch is put in place and the resident starts to remove the halo from the patient, Meredith slowly wheels backwards a meter before letting the chair lower the seat till a sitting position. She leaves for the scrub-room with Cristina in tow.  
"I'm sorry" Cristina says standing beside Meredith by the sink.  
"Mmhm"  
"I'm sorry for trying to steel your surgery, for not telling Shepherd that it was you and only you that found the diagnosis of Katie."  
"Why didn't you tell him?"  
"Because I, along with all the rest of the staff, would never have believed that you could become a surgeon. All I saw was your chair, your useless legs."  
"So it is OK to treat me bad because I can't walk?"  
"No"  
"I got into this program on my merits. Dr Webber knows that as well as my teachers at Dartmouth, where I graduated first. I have met this kind of behavior from day one in this chair. Why would Dr Webber accept an intern that couldn't do what is expected of an intern? I'm no charity case." Meredith's last words came out with a scream as she left the scrub-room and opened the door to where her ordinary chair was parked. She unhooked the belt strapping her to the electric wheelchair and parked the chair in its assigned spot to recharge, before lifting herself over to her normal chair. Cristina has been standing in the doorway the whole time looking at her and finally understands.  
"Meredith, I and the rest of the interns in our group are going to celebrate our first shift at Joe's, the bar across the street. Would you like to join us?"  
Meredith looks long and hard at Cristina before giving her a nod.  
"Great I'll see you in the lobby at five pm."

Cristina, Izzy and George are all waiting in the lobby for Meredith when she comes out of the elevator. She is wearing skinny jeans, a tight tank top and her hair down. George has trouble keeping his eyes of her. She is the most beautiful woman he ever seen. Outside Joe's the walking three seems to realize that Meredith has a problem. There is no way she can jump down the steps on the rear-wheels of her chair as she has done passing the curb up and down. She moves her chair to the stairs and gives George a smile.  
"Want to give me a hand?"  
"Yeah… sure" he mumbles turning bright red in his face.  
He leans down and scoops her up into his arms. She is a light weight.  
"Leave the chair at the door" Meredith says throwing a lock to Cristina.  
"Where do you want to sit?" George whispers in her ear.  
"The bar, just dump me onto a stool."  
"Can you sit there?"  
"Yeah, I am able to balance on my butt…" she giggles.  
George puts her on a stool like she is an expensive vase or something and she swirls to face the bar and the bartender.  
"Hi, what can I do for you" he asks giving them all a smile.  
"Beer in a bottle" Cristina says squeezing down beside Meredith.  
Izzy orders a glass of white wine and George beer from the tap.  
"Tequila, straight" Meredith says.  
"You are going to be sorry in the morning."  
"I'm always sorry in the morning, but tomorrow is my day off after my first shift as an intern so keep them coming."  
When he returns with their orders he watch amazed as she down the shot and slams the glass on the disk.  
"One more, please"  
"I'm Joe" he says filling a new glass for her.  
"I'm Meredith"  
Her fellow interns have been watching her since she sat down.  
"I'm a normal girl. You don't need to stare at me the whole night."  
"Sorry" Izzy says.  
"You are just so normal."  
"Joe. I'm going to need a lot more tequila if these people don't start treating me as any other person."  
Joe keeps filling her new shot-glasses and her new friends start asking all these standard questions about her being in a wheelchair. She just gives them the short version; junior year in high school, benign inoperable tumor pressing on the spine. They get the message and they all start to talk about their first shift.

Derek has been sitting at a table the last hour nursing his drink looking at the interns sitting by the bar. Especially Dr Grey, she seemed to rub him the wrong way. He really is pissed off by being reprimanded by the chief about discrimination… and her OR chair was something else… never in his wildest dreams would he have thought about a wheelchair doing that for a paralyzed surgeon… and she was too beautiful. He finished his drink and when Dr Yang and the other two interns went to play some dart he walked up to the bar.  
"Double scotch, single malt please?"


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N A big thank you to all my readers and if you have commented I'm grateful and you get a bunch a daisies as well. No one is mad that I put Meredith in a wheelchair. Let the story continue ~mcanna **

**Chapter 4**

"Is this your normal hang out place?"

Meredith ignores the voice coming from her right.

"You're ignoring me"

"Trying to" she replies giving the voice a quick look. Shit, McBastard, the last person she want to talk to.

"I didn't know you were a tattler"

"I'm not"

"I beg to differ, you went to the chief"

"I did not, he cornered me"

"You're still a tattler"

"And what are you? A podiatrist?"

"What?" Derek almost chokes on his scotch.

"You can't be a neurosurgeon because they know the difference between the anatomical placement of feet and brain. Joe, one more please" she points at her pyramid of glasses.

Derek just stares at her. She is breathtaking beautiful when her green eyes shoots daggers at him but he hates her for making him feel stupid. His ego doesn't like being wrong in anything. He grabs his drink and walks back towards his table. Sitting down he sees a blond guy sitting down beside her.

A new guy sits on the stool beside her. She ignores him as well.

"Can I buy you a drink?"

"Sure" The guy is hot and has a nice smile.

"I'm Finn"

"Meredith"

"Do you come here often?"

"First time"

"Want to go some where else?"

"Sure, but I will need some help."

"Ok, with what?"

"You'll have to carry me to my wheels"

"Wheels? I got a car or we can take a cab."

"Not my car, my wheelchair. It is outside." The guy gives her a scared look that she has seen in to many faces and she wonders what his excuse will be.

"I… my friends… my friends seem to… they need me to get home. MaybeanothertimeBye." And he bolts from the stool running to his friends.  
She chuckles at his discomfort. It is almost always the same thing.

"What are you laughing about" Cristina asked returning from the game of dart.

"Guys with no brains"

"Who?"

"The blond over there hit on me and wanted to take me home and when I asked him to carry me to my chair he ran."

"I saw you talking to Dr Shepherd, did he apologize?"

"No, he called me tattler and I called him a podiatrist, then he left, McBastard."

"Want to go home?" Izzy and George asked joining them at the bar.

"Sure"

The following morning Meredith woke up with a hangover and slowly made her way to the bathroom and into the shower. She made herself a large pot of coffee before starting with the chores of laundry and housecleaning. When the house was done she wrote a couple of checks to pay some bills and the last one she put in an envelope and dropped into her purse. I need some room-mates to help out with the regular cost of this house she thought. The house was paid and done but there was still maintenance and electricity and stuff to be paid. She wrote a poster to bring along to work in the morning before heading out for her weekly visit with her mother.

Meredith just made it in time for the following shift. She had overslept and had to buy coffee from the cart in the lobby. She ordered a large coffee and turned on the spot running over toes again. This time the toes belonged to the…

"Podiatrist"

"Tattler"

They glared at each other for a second before Meredith wheeled to the elevators.

In the locker room she put her poster on the wall and hurried getting into her scrubs.

"Yang cardio, O'Malley neuro, Stevens rectals, Grey pit" Bailey barked out the days assignments. Meredith grabbed the trauma pager and went to switch chairs. In the pit she had to be able to reach over the table. She had just belted herself in when the pager went off on a 911. She quickly made her way down and saw a lot of people moving around in trauma 2. She hesitated outside until Nurse Taylor looked at her and asked if she was the surgeon on-call. She rolled in asked for stats. A lot of people stared at her but she ignored them as usually. People always stared at her until they learnt to understand that she was just a normal person using wheels instead of legs. The patient was a rape victim and she wore the same kind of leopard colored shoes as Meredith had been wearing this morning. She gave the patient a quick check and ordered consult by neuro, general and ob/gyn. She also ordered MRI and x-rays. The requested surgeons arrived within a couple of minutes and Meredith moved back finishing up the patients history as much as known.

"X-ray and MRI stat" Dr Shepherd called.

"All ready ordered, sir" Taylor answered.

"By whom?"

"Dr Grey"

Derek looked at Meredith before leaving the room saying he meet the patient at the MRI. Dr Bailey looked at Meredith as well and motioned for her to tag along to the viewing room. Meredith followed behind the gurney and Dr Bailey.

"Good call, Dr Grey" Dr Bailey said.

"Thank you"

Outside the viewing room is a new ramp was put in place and Meredith can easily roll into the room. It is only the technician in there. Through the window she can see Dr Shepherd carefully helping transferring the patient to the bed.

Derek sees the ramp outside the room and stares at Meredith entering the room.

"Tattler" he whispers passing behind her.

"Podiatrist" she replies.

The patient needs an surgery ASAP and the surgeons scrub in. Dr Bailey once again asks Meredith to tag along. During surgery Dr Bailey lifts a piece of something out of the open bowels.

"Does anyone know what this is?"

Meredith's eyes grows large before she answers.

"She bit off his penis, it's a piece of his penis."

"We have a warrior in here"

"Her name is Allison" Meredith offers.

"Allison, she is a warrior" Dr Bailey exclaims.

Meredith is responsible for the penis until the police can pick it up. She has to carry around a cooler for the rest of the night. Early in the morning she passes the patients room at the ICU. Dr Shepherd is sitting there working.

"Have you been here the whole night?"

"Yeah"

"Will she be ok?"

"Maybe, yes if she wakes up."

The alarm goes off on several machines and Derek springs into action. Meredith pushes the alarm button on the wall before helping him recording all necessary data. The nurses run in and they wheel her towards an OR. Meredith is waiting outside still along with the cooler. After a couple of hours Derek exits the scrub-room ripping his scrub-cap off.

"Is she ok?"

"Yeah, but I had to leave her scull-flap open to reduce the pressure of the swelling."

"Will she be ok?"

"Yeah, if she wakes up. That penis you're carrying around will help nail the rapist. He will have to seek hospital care sooner or later and then its over for him.

George and Izzy have been harassing her the whole shift. They want to move in and finally after completing the shift she gives in to them and tells them they can move in the following day.

"We spend close to one hundred hours together each week and you want to spend more time together?"

"Yeah, it will be fun" Izzy squeaks.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Meredith is dragging herself out of bed for yet another shift at the hospital. This is the first morning she has roommates and she is not a morning person. After a shower and clothes on, she rolls into the kitchen to start the coffee. She is met by Izzy who has prepared a complete breakfast of French-toasts and coffee.

"What have you done?" Meredith grumps reaching for the coffeepot.

"Oh, just breakfast, a good day starts with a good breakfast. This kitchen is wonderful but we need to restock the pantry."

"I don't cook" Meredith mutters.

"You don't need too, I can cook and I bake."

"I just want coffee" she reaches for her travel-cup but it is not to be found in its usually spot. "Do you know where my travel-cup is?"

"Yeah, I put it in the cupboard over the sink along with your other cups."

"Izzy, can you hand it to me, I can't reach it there?"

Izzy looks at her with shameful eyes.

"I'm so sorry Mer, I didn't think… here you are. I won't do stuff like that again. Sorry I'm stupid."

"Izzy, shut up. You are not stupid. This is actually good. You don't see my wheels anymore. You see me. Just give me the cup and please leave it on the counter after the dishwasher if you don't want me to wake you up when I need it early in the mornings on your days off." Meredith rolls up to the table and grabs a toast in a napkin and brings it along with the coffee for the ride to the hospital.

"Can we ride together to the hospital?" George comes running into the kitchen pulling down a tee shirt over his head.

"Sure, but you need to be in my car in five minutes."

"Are you driving?" the two of the stare at her.

"Yeah, how did you think I moved around? Going in this chair for 6 km every morning? My arms would kill me" she rolls through the front door and just to show off on the two watching from the hall she jumps the two steps on her rear-wheels instead of going around on the walk. She starts to place her bag, coffee and toast in the appropriate places and presses a button on her keychain. The driver seat swings out and she hoists herself onto it and folds her chair rolling it into the backseat. A new push on the button on her keychain closes the back door and swirls her seat into position for driving.

"Are you guys coming or should I go by myself?"

Izzy and George scrambles into action and are soon seated in the car.

"This car is amazing" George says sitting in the passenger seat looking at her hand controls. "Can you take more than two passengers?

"Yeah, if the passengers put my wheels in the trunk."

Bailey sends them on assignment after rounds. Meredith is doing post-op notes for Dr Burke when she over hears an argument between a fellow intern and a nurse.

"Are you sure this is the correct diagnosis, doctor?" the nurse asks.

"Yeah I am. She got fever and shortness of breath, it is pneumonia, start her on antibiotics."

"I'm not sure about that doctor" the nurse says.

"Why don't you go to med-school for four years and then deliver your diagnosis."

The nurse walks to the medicine cabinet pulling out the suitable meds.

"Nurses" the intern complains looking at Meredith with a patronizing smirk.

"You know, she could be right" Meredith says.

"Nurses" he says with a disdainful look at her.

"Did you call me a nurse?"

"If the shoe fits"

Meredith looks after him speechless shaking her head.

A couple of hours later she is back in post-op doing more charts when Dr Webber arrives after being paged by the nurses.

"What the problem with my patient?"

"The fever is not breaking and the patient is close to crashing."

"Dr Karev, what is your diagnosis?"

"Pneumonia sir and she is on antibiotics."

"What did the tests say."

"Well, hmm, I haven't had time?"

"You haven't done any?"

"No sir"

"Name the common causes of post-op fever"

Alex searches his pocket for his book.

"No, do it without any book."

Alex gets silent and everyone in the room are looking at the two doctors.

"Anyone, common causes of post-op fevers?"

"The five 'W', wind, water, walking, wound and wonder-drugs, sir" Meredith answers.

Dr Webber looks at her and gives her a smile before asking for her treatment plan and then telling Alex to follow through and ask his resident for a new assignment. Alex just glares at her before doing as asked. Dr Shepherd has been in the room as well and passes her on his way out whispering behind her back.

"Tattler showing of for the chief"

"Podiatrist" she responds

Early the next morning both Meredith and Alex are in the pit, waiting for the first victims of Dead Baby Bike Race. They enter the waiting area and are going for the guy with five spokes sticking out of his abdomen.

"He is mine"

"No I saw him first" Alex reaches out and pulls the spokes out. "Look it is not even surgical. You can have him. I'm going to find something surgical." He saunters off.

"What the heck. You didn't even do an x-ray, what if there is an internal bleeding."

"It is just superficial, stitch him up and find a real case."

Meredith looks at the guy who is studying her.

"Sorry for that jerk, but you really should have some tests done."

"No just sew me up so I can go back to the race."

"But you can't win."

"No but there is one big party at the finishing line. Why don't you come and join me there?"

"Are you hitting on me?"

"Yeah, you are hot"

"Thanks, but no thanks" she gives him a smile. He is really cute but not really her type. She stitches him up and makes him sign AMA form along with all the other papers. When he hands them back he grabs her shoulders and leans in and steals a kiss. At first she doesn't know what to do but then her senses catches up and she pushes him away.

"What was that for?"

"Good luck, you're hot. See you again."

"I hope not" she yells after him before starting to tidy up the stuff she used on him. Looking up she sees Dr Shepherd outside the room.

"Are you making out with patients?"

"No I'm not! Are you jealous?"

"Of course not, I'm never jealous, just don't do it again it is not professional."

The following morning they are all in the pit again. The leftovers are to be treated. Meredith rolls through the waiting area and sees her biker from yesterday.

"Dr Karev, what is Viper doing here today?"

"Don't know, he's just sitting there. I have some real promising cases, you take him."

"I intend to."

"Viper, how are you today?" Meredith asks wheeling up to him.

He looks at her, tries to stand up but triples over, grappling his stomach.

"I need some help here, I need a gurney ASAP." Meredith shouts to the attending nurses.

They come running over and lifts him up. Meredith stands up with the help of her chair and lifts his tee shirt. He has a large edema that splits and blood flows everywhere.

"Page Bailey and lets bring him to the OR." She controls her chair with her elbow and holds his skin together with her other hand.

They all fit into the elevator where Alex just stares at her. Well in the OR he tries to take her place but Dr Bailey sends him away only wanting Meredith there. They work together and Meredith even gets to close the wound by herself.

"Good work Grey" Dr Bailey compliments her while they are scrubbing out. "Your chair is something special"

"Yeah, its custom built from a chair for golfers."

After lunch Dr Bailey walks up to the nurses' head quarters were her interns are waiting for her. She has Dr Alex Karev in tow.

"Take care of this one. Teach him my rules. He is one of ours from now on."

Cristina, George, Izzy and Meredith look at each other and then Cristina says;

"You can shadow me, evil spawn."

They all meet in the basement later on sitting there talking when Alex asks Meredith.

"Your other chair is quite awesome. How fast is it?"

"Faster then you are."

"No way!

"Wanna bet?"

"Sure I'll race you but if I win you do all my rectal exams for a month."

"You're on, but same goes if I win" Meredith shakes his hand.

"Ok, but it has to be after shift, when the halls are empty" George says.

They leave after deciding to meet outside the supply-room at 10:15 pm.

Meredith changes to her other chair while Cristina grabs her ordinary chair and George one from the hallway. They all line up, Alex to run and the other three in wheel-chairs. Izzy starts them on three. Alex is fastest in the start but Meredith soon gains on him with Cristina as a shadow behind her. Halfway through the hallway Meredith passes Alex as does Cristina. George is far behind having trouble with the steering of his chair. Meredith turns around sticking her tongue out when passing Alex but comes to a squeaking stop when seeing Dr Bailey in her way.

"What do you fools think you are doing?"

"Sorry Dr Bailey, but we are just settling a bet" Izzy starts.

"You have just made my coming week very easy. All five of you are on the nurses' service for the coming week and you will not see the inside of an OR until I say so."

The five of them looms off.

"You and your stupid bet" Cristina mutters under her breath on her way to the locker rooms.


	6. Chapter 6

**I big thank you to my reviewers.  
This chapter involves one of my less favorite charachers but let's have some fun with that one for a couple of updates. :evil laugh:**

**Chapter 6**

When the week of being on the nurses' service was over they decided to have a party at the house. They were all sick of bedpans, rectal exams and vomit cleaning. All nurses had had a field day coming up with new ways of terrorizing the five interns.

"Let's invite some of the guy's in peds. They are really nice" Izzy says.

"Give it a break, soon you want the derm or the shrinks to come" Cristina intervenes.

"Some of the nurses at psych are really hot" Alex answers.

"No nurses" Meredith and Cristina exclaims in unison.

"But I want Olivia to come" George says.

"Absolutely no surgical nurses, are you nuts?" Cristina sends him an evil glare.

"Let's keep it down to just a couple of good interns and maybe some residents" Meredith suggests.

They all agree and divide the chores. Meredith is to drive with Izzy to the market and shop some snacks.

On the day of the party Meredith gets called into her mother's nursing home to sign some papers regarding the estate but her mother is not lucid when Meredith finally arrives after a long day at the hospital. She drives slowly towards the house. Already before she turns up to her street there are cars parked along the road. She slowly drives up to the house and double-park with Izzy's car. There are more people walking to and from her house than she has ever seen at the hospital. Grabbing her stuff she slowly wheels inside finding people everywhere. In her room she finds a couple making out on her bed and gives up a growl and kicks them out. She locks her door behind her in search for tequila, lots and lots of tequila. A bottle is standing on the kitchen counter and she grabs that before looking for her friends and someone to go Kevorkian on.

"Come on Derek, it will be fun. I heard about this party from some of the nurses. I want to show you off" Rose says dragging him along the road.

He really doesn't want to go to a party with hospital staff. He gets enough of hospital talk during his shifts. He wants to eat a nice meal in a quiet restaurant and talk to Rose and maybe take her to bed. She is different but similar to Addison. Note to self stop thinking about Addison… and Mark. The house they are going to are swamped with people. There are people everywhere. Rose is soon dragged into the house by her nurse friends. He opted to stay outside where it is possible to breathe. A melodic giggle is heard over the buzz. He looks around in search of its origin. It is heard again and then he sees the last person on earth he wants to see, Dr Meredith Grey. She is coming around the corner of the house giggling as she is followed one of her fellow interns in peds.

"No I don't want to see your tattoos"

"But I have some really nice ones I want to show you" the man pouts.

"Go show them to a nurse, they might get impressed" she says taking a swig from a bottle in her lap.

The music is heard onto the patio and she slowly swirls her chair in the rhythm of the song. Derek has trouble taking his eyes of her. She is so very beautiful. He leans back against the car behind him and can feel his pants getting tighter. It makes him realize who he is fantasizing about. A deep breath and he straightens his clothes and takes a couple of steps towards the door in an attempt to find Rose and get out of there.

"Oh, what is this, I didn't know that we invited the podiatrists to this party."

"You are drunk, tattler"

"You are hot, but I so don't want you."

"You are awfully disgustingly drunk and tasteless."

"And you are still brainless"

"You should go home before you make a fool of yourself."

"Oh, but I am home."

"Then I will be out of here, I'll just go and get my date."

Meredith watches him enter her house and takes a new swig of tequila before he exits with Nurse Rose in tow.

"Oh, I can see your taste now" she says to him.

"Oh, she is so much better than tequila. Tequila doesn't call or write and is no fun waking up to."

"More fun than your choice is to wake up with."

Derek fumes at her insults towards his date.

"That Dr Grey, is awfully drunk and tacky" Rose says.

"You don't have anything to say about her." Derek says.

"But she is a drunken handicapped intern thinking she can become a surgeon. It is really pathetic."

"You shut up. I don't want to hear a word about Dr Grey."

Rose stares at her date. He has never spoken like that to her before. Well inside his car he angrily attacks her lips letting his hands roam over her body. She grabs his shoulders pushing him slightly away.

"Oh, Derek"

Rose voice breaks the spell and Derek lets go of her and falls back onto his seat taking deep breaths.

"Sorry Rose"

He puts the key into the ignition and drives her home. After dropping her off with a soft kiss he boards the ferryboat to his island. Thinking about a drunk and hot Dr Grey.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you Natasja and AiLing for your reviews! A comment makes this so much more fun.  
**

**Let's have some more fun with the… plant. The following couple of chapters mix up some events from the show. Another not so lovable character shows up and might not make you that happy but every cloud has a silver lining.**

**Chapter 7**

"Dr Grey, you are requested for a surgery this evening" Bailey calls her across the hall.

"Ok" Meredith answers rolling over to get more information.

"It is Dr Shepherd removing a tumor from the chief's optical nerve and everything is kept under wrap."

"Did Dr Shepherd request me?" Meredith asks.

"No the chief, he put the team together."

Derek comes sauntering up to them and whispers.

"Are you ready for our super silent secrete sunset surgery?"

"You have too much time on your hands" Dr Bailey leaves towards the OR with Meredith in tow.

The surgery is a success and they all leave the OR after getting some last instructions about post-op care by Dr Shepherd.

"You are off" Dr Bailey sends Meredith home.

Meredith rolls into the locker room taking a quick shower. She is to meet with her friends at Joe's for a drink. When she exits the elevator she can see how McBastard is helping Nurse Rose with her coat. It looks like they are on their way to a date. She wonders how he can date that candy-chewing horse-face. When she wheels closer to the exit, a red-haired, elegantly dressed woman, steps into the lobby. She stops inside taking a look around like she is trying to find her way around. Her body straightens and Meredith can see how she focus on McBastard and his nurse. The woman walks up to the couple with a smirk on her face. McBastard leans towards the nurse with an apologetic smile before turning to face the elegant woman. Meredith rolls slowly forward to be able to hear what will be said.

"Hello Derek" the red-haired addresses McBastard.

"What are you doing here Addison?"

"You would know if you ever answered your phone" she says and turns towards the nurse and holds her hand out.

"We haven't been introduced. I'm Dr Addison Forbes Montgomery Shepherd and you must be the woman screwing my husband."

Meredith looks in astonishment at the tabloid in front of her. Rose drops her chin and shows off some licorice between her teeth. Her eyes almost pop out and then she takes off running for the stairs crying.

"Your… friend seems surprised"

"That was mean even by your standards Addie"

"You should probably go and comfort her."

"What are you doing here?"

"Richard called me for a consult."

They moved towards the elevators together and Meredith tried to act as she hadn't heard anything. Derek glares at her before pressing the call-button.

"Dr Grey why are you not over seeing our patient?"

"Dr Bailey sent me home, she is on-call tonight Dr Shepherd, have a good night!"

Addison is quiet until the doors are closed behind them in the empty elevator.

"Who was that?"

"Oh, that is Dr Grey, an annoying surgical intern."

"But she is in a wheel-chair."

"Yeah"

"Surgeons can't be in wheel-chairs, she is handicapped."

"Don't tell her that."

"You said Dr Grey, is she a relative of Dr Ellis Grey?"

"Daughter"

"Oh, that's why she was accepted, mother surgeon demanded an exception?"

"No I don't think so. She never speaks about her mother."

"But she is down grading the hospitals status, you can't be handicapped and stay a surgeon, that is so low-class."

"Shut up Addison."

Meredith wraps her jacket around her shoulders and leaves for Joe's. She really wants to tell her friends about this event. Well at the stairs above the entrance she ponders about how she'll get down. She can call George or Alex but she doesn't want to. She wants to do it by herself. She looks at the house and can see that the front is in street level and Joe's occupies the basement but the backstreet of the house is lower. Maybe she can go around and enter from the kitchen area. There is no other option if she wants to manage by herself. The street sweeps down around the corner and she follows the curb. There in a small alley she can see Joe's backdoor. She rolls up and it is unlocked. She quickly enters closing the door behind her. Joe's partner Walter is manning the stove and the dishwasher is humming in the background. Walter looks up surprised to see her.

"Hi Mer, what are you doing back here?"

"Hi Walter, I didn't have anyone to help me down the stairs so I took a chance that I could go through the kitchen. Is that ok?"

"Yeah sure, you are always welcome. Do you need help down the two steps to the bar?"

"No, I'm fine thank you" Meredith rolls towards the bar and jumps elegant down the steps on her rear-wheels."

"Hi there Mer, why are you in a wheel-chair?" Joe asks her a little surprised as well.

"Can't walk, tumor in my spine."

"How come I didn't know that"

"You didn't? I have always arrived here in the arms of a guy and leaving in the same way."

"Yeah, but I just didn't think about way."

"If I come alone as I did tonight, is it ok if I use your backdoor?"

"Always Meredith, always"

Meredith rolls up to her friends who are sitting by a table. She pushes a chair to the side and stays in her own chair.

"Hi guys"

"Mer, you made it."

"What surgery was you tied up in?"

"A tumor removal with McBastard."

"You guys want to play a game of whose life sucks the most?" Cristina asks.

"Sure, I'll start" Meredith says with a devilish sparkle in her eyes. "McBastard is McMarried and McWife showed up just as he was taking McCandy out on a date. McWife introduced herself to McCandy who took off running with candy stuck between her teeth. McWife is a gorgeous red-head in designer clothes."

George chokes on his beer and gets beer dripping from his nose. He leaves for the restrooms followed by Izzy.

"He doesn't win, I'm pregnant, I win" Cristina says taking a sip of her beer.

Meredith stares at her for a minute.

"Are you ok? You shouldn't be drinking beer if you're pregnant!"

"I'm not keeping it. I wrote you up as my person on the clinic so you can… be there afterwards."

"Ok" Meredith simply answers leaning forward giving her a half hug.

"I don't hug"

"Shut up Cristina, I'm your person and yes you win but you have to tell me who the father is."

Joe trips over behind them, they stare first before jumping into action calling for an ambulance.

"Joe wins" Cristina says before securing his airways while waiting for the EMT.

At the hospital it is soon decided that Joe will need a stand-still operation. George and Cristina get picked to do pre-op labs and scans and the other interns slowly head home. Derek can see that Richard is awake and enters the room trying to get an explanation of why he wasn't told about the arrival of his wife. Addison is already there chatting Richard up.

"Oh, here is your husband Addie" Richard says seeing Derek hovering by the door.

"Addison" Derek curtly says entering the room and turns his eyes onto Richard.

"Richard, why didn't you tell me? You know why I came here and now you bring her here."

"I brought Addie here because she is the best in her field and this patient needs the best."

"And she couldn't do it as a phone-consult?"

"No, I'm sorry to inform you Derek but this hospital can't make any exceptions of the treatment to suit your personal life. Your wife is the best and therefore is she here. Now leave and maybe you should do something about that candy-chewing nurse. She ran past here a while ago."

Derek storms off not even looking for Rose, he is to mad at Richard and Addison. In the parking-lot he can see how Meredith hoists herself onto a drivers-seat and swirls the seat back into position. Her friends put her chair in the trunk. Their car takes off with Derek following behind for a couple of blocks wondering how she can drive a car that looks so normal. The woman amazes him even though he loathes her.

**Please remember this: mcanna is a MerDer shipper, mcanna is a huge MerDer fan, mcanna writes stories with happy MerDer endings**


	8. Chapter 8

**A big THANK YOU for all comments. You make my day. :)  
~mcanna**

**Chapter 8  
**

Dr Addison Forbes Montgomery-Shepherd requested Meredith in the morning. She went to the temporary Chief Burke. Meredith didn't understand why but soon found herself being questioned by a hard core doctor about an uncommon complication of twin-pregnancies. She felt happy that she did a tough practice at a maternity department during med-school and had seen the problem before and therefore knew the treatment. Addison stared at her when she knew all the answers and thanked her by sending her to do charts and labs on all of Addison's other patients while Addison were operating on the twins. Meredith had only time to watch the surgery the last twenty minutes. She sat beside Cristina and whispered about how Rose and Addison where sending each other death-glares across the table.

"It is good for McWife that McCandy isn't handling her instruments today. McCandy looks like she might stab McWife" Cristina comments.

The surgery is winding up and Meredith takes that as her note to leave and wait for Dr Montgomery-Shepherd outside the OR.

"I have your lab-results here Dr Montgomery-Shepherd."

"Thank you Dr Grey. Did you have the time to see the surgery? It is too bad you can't scrub in" Addison says with a patronizing smirk.

Before Meredith has a chance to answer Dr Bailey calls her and runs up to them.

"I'm sorry Dr Montgomery-Shepherd but I need Dr Grey for an emergency surgery. Can she join me?"

"Yeah, but for what do you need her? She can't be of any use."

Dr Bailey just stares at her and sends Meredith a smirk.

"See you in three minutes Dr Bailey" Meredith says before opening the supply-room where her other chair is.

She switches chairs and when exiting the room Addison is still there staring at her. Meredith rolls into the scrub-room and is soon beside Bailey listening carefully at the planed course of surgery. She raises her chair until standing and helps Bailey during the surgery. Up in the gallery Addison is staring at Meredith for a couple of minutes before exiting shaking her head.

By the elevator she finds Derek and that nurse. It seems like they are arguing. She walks up there and can't help herself for leaning closer to Derek whispering, just loud enough for Rose to hear, in his ear.

"I need a neurosurgeon. Do you know of any good one?"

Nurse Rose stares at her before turning on her heel storming off.

"You are mean. Why don't you fly back to New York on your broomstick?"

"I might be Satan, but maybe I'm still the love of your life?" she says entering the elevators.

A couple of hours later she finds him in the NICU reading the charts on her little patient. He is sitting in a rocker and she walks up to him.

"She can't survive a surgery. She is too fragile" Derek exclaims.

"But she is a fighter."

"Maybe if she is stronger by tomorrow I can do a new evaluation."

"Derek, I want you back. I want you to forgive me enough for trying again. I'll even give you a couple of options. You can hold this over my head in every fight we ever might have. You can mop around and then we can have great makeup sex."

"What's the third option?"

"I love you" she says leaning in kissing him softly.

He sits there staring after her.

The following day the baby is stable enough for undergoing a spinal surgery. The OR is tensed. Rose is the scrub nurse standing between the two doctor Shepherds.

"Derek" Rose starts a sentence but is cut off by Derek.

"Nurse Rose, this is not a social event. 10-blade" he hold out his hand.

Rose slams the requested scalpel down into his hand backwards and he drops it when it slices through his glove and cut his hand opened. He stares at her with surprised eyes.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Sorry" she says staring at him with her doe-eyes.

"Sorry wont do it. Get out of here, now" he screams while ripping his gloves off. "Nurse I need a large bandage" he says staring at the damaged hand.

Addison is checking on the baby's vitals.

"Derek, can you continue?"

"Yes and no, call Dr Grey and ask her to scrub in ASAP."

"Dr Grey?" Addison asks.

"Yeah, she has done similar things before and I can talk her through the rest" he says trying to stop the blood from dripping. He tries moving his fingers but it hurts too much to hold a scalpel.

Meredith gets a 911 to the OR and hurries into the scrub-room for more information.

"Dr Shepherd, you paged?"

"Yeah, scrub in ASAP. I need your hands."

She is soon scrubbed in and enters the room while rising in her chair moving towards the table. The nurse chases her with gloves and robes and Derek explain what she needs to do. Meredith follows his instructions and the little patient is soon to be wheeled back to NICU. Addison follows her patient and Derek looks at Meredith.

"Can you stitch up my hand, tattler?"

"Sure can do podiatrist, I just need to change my gloves."

Derek sits down on a stool while the nurses start to clean the OR around them. Meredith brings a suture kit along and opens it in her lap. She cleans the wound and starts stitching his hand in silence.

"Rose stabbed me" he offers answering her unspoken question.

"McWife became too much for McCandy?"

"What did you just call Addison and Rose?"

"McWife and McCandy"

"Do I want to know what you call me?"

"I call you podiatrist"

"Yeah but when I'm not listening?"

"No"

"No?"

"No you don't want to know" she smirks at him finishing the stitches.

"Thank you for helping out today Grey. You did good" he sends her one of his McDreamy smiles and she almost succumbs, but only almost.

"Thank you Dr Shepherd" she answers before dumping the remains of the suture kit in the bin before leaving the OR.

Derek follows behind already preparing for the meeting with the Chief that he needs to have.

"What happened in the OR, the gossip is going crazy today?" Dr Burkes asks sitting in the Chiefs office.

"Nurse Rose stabbed me" Derek holds his hand up as evidence. "I have 5 sutures here and I had to call for help to finish the surgery."

Addison is waiting for him in the lobby when he is about to leave in the evening.

"How is your hand? Who did your stitches?"

"My hand is fine. Dr Grey stitched me up. She did well today in the OR."

"But will she ever be able to be in charge of a surgery? It is easy to follow instructions. That can even a five years old manage."

"Dr Grey is good. She is one of the best interns this hospital has."

"That doesn't say anything about her abilities. It is not in comparison with other hospitals."

"Don't down talk Dr Grey ever" he says storming out of the hospital.

Addison takes a cab to her hotel wondering if Derek will divorce her or not.

When Meredith arrives home she finds her room-mates watching a surgery-tape of one of her mother's cases. She parks her chair beside the couch and hoists herself over. Lifting her legs up and covers her with the blanket George and Izzy are cuddling under.

"Is she pulling the face off?" Izzy squeaks and Cristina sitting in the recliner takes a swig of her beer before answering.

"Yeah, how cool is that?"

**Please remember this: mcanna is a MerDer shipper, mcanna is a huge MerDer fan, mcanna writes stories with happy MerDer endings… if necessary repeat **


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Addison met Derek outside the elevators when stepping out onto the surgical floor.

"Do you have a minute?"

"Why don't you take you broom and fly back to New York Addie?" he whines seeing her again.

"If you sign, I'll sign" she says and hands him an envelope.

"What is this?"

"Divorce papers Derek. If you sign them I'll be on the next plane out."

He stares at her before taking the papers.

"You had papers drawn up?"

"Yeah, the lawyers accept them. You just have to sign."

He stares at her before leaving for his office in a daze.

Meredith and Izzy are sitting in the gallery watching open heart-surgery preformed by Burke. Cristina is in the OR together with the rest of Burkes residents.

"Did you hear the rumor that McCandy left the hospital crying yesterday?"

"Yeah, Nurse Debbie said that she got fired after the stabbing. Dr Burke was just going to suspend her for some days but when Dr Webber heard he fired her on the spot."

"Bad timing for her, I overheard McWife give McBastard divorce papers this morning"

Meredith whispers back just as they can see Cristina fall to the floor.

"Cristina!"

A lot of commotion in the OR with Burke ordering a gurney and Bailey following it close behind. Meredith and Izzy met them out in the hallway.

"Not now, we need to bring her into an exam room.

"Page Dr Montgomery-Shepherd" Meredith says quietly to Dr Bailey.

"Why?"

"She is pregnant"

Addison arrives within a couple of minutes and sends Meredith to wait outside.

"I'm her person. She needs me."

"Go wait in the waiting area. You can't be of any help."

Meredith stares at her and gives Dr Bailey a long look but has to leave anyhow.

Derek is sitting in his office staring at the divorce papers. He has read every line and now only has to sign. The eleven years together flashes past him. How beautiful she was walking towards him in church... The opening of his private practice... When they moved into the brownstone... How he came home one night finding her and Mark in his bed... The walk upstairs and his feeling of knowing what he would see… He sank back into his chair taking deep breath clutching a pen in his hand… Their last kiss up in the NICU when she asked him for forgiveness. He throws the pen across the room. Their vows, his vows in front of hundreds of their best friends and family meant something. He will have to try and make it right. He walks off in search of his adulterous wife. In the waiting area he finds Meredith sitting with a worried face. She is so very beautiful. He leans at the wall looking at her for a while. Suddenly his wife walks past him towards Meredith.

"Dr Grey" Meredith snaps out of her thoughts.

"Yes"

"She is in recovery. It was an ectopic pregnancy. A fallopian tube was damaged and I had to remove it as well as doing a complete D and C. She will be in a room in a couple of hours."

"Thank you Dr Montgomery-Shepherd" Meredith whispers with tears in her eyes.

Derek is wondering why Meredith is having a discussion with Addison while looking so sad. He walks up to them when Addison turns to leave,

"Addie, can we have talk?"

"Have you signed?"

"Please Addie, can we talk?"

"Sure, the bar across the street in an hour."

"See you there Addie."

Meredith met her friends at Joe's. They are all worried about Cristina. Derek is sitting at a table nursing his scotch waiting for Addison. His eyes follow Meredith and her friends. They are all sitting by the bar and no one can see that Meredith is paralyzed. A look around the bar reveals that more then one guy has their eyes at the two girls sitting there. They are alone since both Alex and George are playing dart. Two guys step up beside the girls and start hitting on them. Derek can't understand why he gets this gut wrenching feeling looking at Meredith with a guy.

Meredith and Izzy are looking at each other before the new drinks the two guys offer them arrive. The guys sit down and are pretty straight forward on wanting them to join them at their hotel room. Meredith signals to Izzy that she will play along for a while. A couple of shots of tequila later both of them are kissing a guy each. When Meredith's guy tries to pull her down her stool she stops him.

"Stop, I can't stand."

"Oh, I'll hold you" he wraps his arm tighter around her waist slowly pulling her forward.

"Watch it" she pushes him away and scoots back on the chair.

"Oh let's dance" he makes a new go for her seeing Izzy is up dancing with his friend.

"No, I can't" she says and can see Joe step up ready to interfere.

"Do you need anything, Meredith?" he asks.

"No I'm fine Joe."

"Just holler and I'll be here in a second" he says as warning to the guy.

The guy has let go but tries a new approach.

"Want to go for a walk?"

Now Meredith just laughs at him.

"You don't want to take me for walk."

"Oh, sure I do. I want to take you for a walk back to my hotel."

Izzy and her guy are returning to the bar, followed shortly by a pissed Alex and George in tow.

Derek has been watching the interns by the bar until Addison showed up. He orders a Cosmo for her and a new scotch for himself. They sit there in silent for a while looking at each other.

"Have you signed?" Addie finally asks.

"Not yet" he answers.

"Why not?"

"I can't get past the vows we made to each other in church. They meant something and I'm not sure if they meant enough for me to want to try and fix us."

Addison looks at him. She can see that he is still very hurt and don't know how to handle her infidelity.

"Derek, I came here for two reasons. The first is the simplest one, to fix my patient but my more important reason was to get you back."

"You hurt me so much."

"I know and I want to spend the rest of my life making up for that."

"How do we do this?"

"We can start by taking help from a marriage counselor."

"Ok… sure… we can do that."

They sit there for a while in silence contemplating their lives. Derek's eyes are once more resting on Meredith. The guy is trying to pull her off her chair and he is almost standing before he sees Joe stepping up behind the bar. He sits back again as Alex and George finishes their game of dart and steps up to Meredith and Izzy who is back from the dance-floor. He can see how George stands behind Meredith and leans forward asking her something.

George leans forward whispering in Meredith's ear.

"Do you want to go home?"

"Yeah, let's just have some fun first" she replies with a smirk.

She looks back at the guy hitting on her.

"Do you still want to take that walk?"

"Yeah" he looks at her surprised even more surprised when she leans into him kissing him deeply. He grabs hold of her shirt while kissing her back. Coming up for air he whispers. "Wanna go now?"

"Yeah, but you have to carry me."

"Carry why. Are you drunk?"

"I'm lame"

"You're joking… right?"

"No"

She is looking at him with a knowing smirk and can see how he processes the information before taking a step back looking frantically after his friend.

"I'll be right back… I'll just need to…" he grabs his friend by the arm and drags him towards the rest-rooms.

Alex, George and Izzy are laughing at them as Meredith leans once again back to George.

"I could need some help getting up the stairs."

George sweeps her into his arms. The guys are looking at them leaving and Meredith gives them a wave and a smirk.

Derek has trouble concentrating on his wife. The kiss Meredith shared with the guy was the hottest thing he seen a long while and he wished he was at the recipient side of it.

**I'm against easy divorces and I want them to work on their marriage for the time being. It suits a purpose in the intrigue.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

During the following weeks Derek and Addison went to scheduled meetings with their marriage counselor. Derek always felt like it gave nothing but Addison became more and more outspoken. After two weeks Addison moved into the trailer and they had a new fighting area. She hated every inch of the trailer and the property of forty acres. It was too small for her things. She had to keep most of her belongings in boxes at a storage unit outside the city. Derek went fishing every morning at three and came back smelling of fish and even cooking his catch inside the trailer for breakfast. She just hated it. They had not had sex yet and she was frustrated and tense. This evening just made everything even worse a raccoon had got into the trailer and gone havoc. Derek just cleaned up the mess with a laugh and went to bed. The next morning Addison could only find one of her new shoes.

Meredith is reading a patient-chart on the screen of a computer when she can feel someone leaning over her shoulder reading as well.

"Invasive small cell… the guy is pretty much a goner."

She looks up and sees a handsome blond man with a trimmed beard and flirty eyes. The man wears black jeans and leather jacket over a black tee shirt.

"Sensitivity… just what I like in a man" she says with a smile.

"Do you go out with co-workers?"

"I make a point of not to."

"Then it's good that I don't work here" he says with a smile.

"Are you hitting on me at a hospital?"

"Yeah, is that wrong? I need to be cheered up after getting to close in contact with all this rain. I would have stayed in bed if I had some company."

"You are hitting at me" she says with an amused smirk.

"Dr Mark Sloan, plastic-surgeon" he says.

"Dr Meredith Grey, surgical intern" she says as a fist connects with Mark's chin.

Mark falls flat on the floor and Meredith can see Dr Shepherd shaking his hand due to the pain.

"What the hell are you doing, podiatrist?"

"That is Mark Sloan… he is a man-whore… he slept with my wife" Derek answers nursing his hand.

"Dr Grey, bring the victim to an exam-room, Dr Shepherd my office now" Dr Webber orders.

Addison has been tempted by the tumult and enters the area in time of seeing her lover being ushered towards an exam-room and her husband looming off in the wake of Dr Webber. She decides to follow her husband.

Meredith follows Mark into an exam-room. After placing him on the low stool she cleaned and checked his wound out.

"You need a couple of stitches."

"Can you hold the mirror? I'll do it myself."

"I am able to stitch you up you know…" she said curtly.

He looked at her with questions in his eyes.

"What?"

"Yeah, I can't walk but I'm not using my legs to suture."

"I didn't mean to offend you but no one but me touches my face unless it is a handful of my fellow plastic surgeons that I respect."

"Oh"

"Yes, I never thought anything less of you. I know that brains and legs are not the same thing. Why are you on wheels anyway?"

She smiles at his reference of being on wheels before answering.

"I have a benign inoperable tumor in my spine and I'm glad you are not a podiatrist as well."

"Have Derek found something he can't do and who is the podiatrist?" Mark asks in astonishment.

"No, he has not looked at my plates. I never bring them around and show them to doctors. That would be embarrassing. Dr Shepherd doesn't know the different between a brain and legs. He is the podiatrist."

"He would probably love the challenge. He is the best you know."

"Yeah, but it still makes the tumor inoperable."

"Would you like to go out with me?" he asks after finishing his own face.

"No, I don't date co-workers."

"But a drink at least."

"We need to get you to x-ray and check for fractures" she ignores his pleads.

In Dr Webber office the silence is thick enough to be sliced with a knife.

"Who is the man?"

"Dr Mark Sloan, plastic surgeon and Derek's former best friend" Addison answers when Derek remains silent.

"Why did you hit Dr Sloan?"

"Yeah, why did I hit Mark, Addie?" Derek mocks his wife.

Addison looks embarrassed down at her hands.

"I had a one night stand with Mark and Derek walked in on us in our master bedroom."

"Did you put your weight behind it?" Dr Webber leans into Derek and asks.

"Yes sir"

"Good, now go and ice that two million dollar hand of yours."

Derek scrambles to his feet and leaves the office. Addison hurries behind.

"Derek, I didn't know that he was coming. I haven't spoken to him since before I left New York. Please Derek don't be mad."

Meredith and her friends decide during lunch to meet at Joe's. They also decide that Dr Mark Sloan should be nicknamed McSteamy. At the end of the shift Meredith and Alex makes it together to Joe's and Alex carries her downstairs as usually. They see their friends sitting in a booth and Alex carefully sits her down on the bench. She slides into the wall and Cristina who sat there before moves to the seat beside her. Alex walks up to Joe and orders their regular. Mark is sitting at the bar looking across it at Addison and Derek who is also there. Neither of the three pretends to notice each other. Mark nurses his scotch watching the interns and especially Dr Grey. She intrigues him with her petit frame and long blonde hair. Her ambition to become a surgeon is also in her favor. He likes women who know what they want and goes for it. Just like Addison. A sneak glance at Addison confirms that she is trying to ignore him and tries to make it up to Derek. Derek is ignoring her attempts and keeps his eyes averted to… where to? Mark follows his sight of line and sees… Dr Grey. He himself prefers to look in the same direction and since Addison doesn't want to look at him and Derek can't really mind he takes the chance to get to know Dr Grey a little better when the intern beside her leaves to play dart.

"Hi" he says sliding down beside Meredith.

She looks at him with slightly drunken eyes.

"Look Izzy, it's Dr McSteamy."

"What did you call me?" Mark asks her with an amused smile.

"You are hot and we nicknamed you McSteamy" she giggles.

Her giggle is intoxicating and he wants to hear more.

"Who else have you nicknamed?"

"Oh, only McBastard with McWife and McBastard's nurse McCandy."

"McWife I think I get but why McBastard and McCandy?"

"McBastard because he gave my surgery to Cristina when he thought my brain was in my legs and McCandy is the nurse he dated who eat candy all day long. You should have seen her face when McWife showed up and introduced herself. It was hilarious."

Meredith is giggling hysterical now. He can't help himself but to lean in and steal a kiss. She is to tempting. He is rewarded with a new giggle.

"Dr Sloan, I told you that I don't date."

"Me neither, you are McHottie"

"You can't nickname me. You are not an intern" she scolds him.

"But you are hot" he replies.

"And you are a man-whore" she answers with a new giggle.

Derek is looking at the interns' table and when he sees Mark sliding down beside Meredith he almost sees red. He downs the rest of his drink and almost chokes on it. Addison who is sitting with her back against the table wonders what he is doing. He looks at her drink and sees that she have half left. He orders a new drink and continues looking at the intern table.

Mark has asked the interns to call him Mark when out of the hospital.

"Are you staying here for long?" George asks him.

"Yeah, Dr Webber asked me to join the staff and head the plastics department."

"He did" Alex asks with interesting eyes.

"Yeah, I'm starting tomorrow with a case of lionitis" Mark explains.

"Do you need any intern?"

"I don't work with interns."

"Where are you staying?" Izzy asks.

"I don't know yet."

"You can stay with us, I have a large house with empty bedrooms" Meredith can hear her saying.

"I can? Will it be far from your room?"

"You can come and see tonight."

"Let's go, where are your wheels McHottie?" Mark asks scooping her into his arms.  
She wraps her arms around his neck and rests her head below his chin. He can't help but placing a kiss on her flowery smelling hair.

Derek has not let the interns table out of sight and when he sees Mark picking Meredith up he stands up in a hurry.

"Addie we are leaving."

She looks up with a question in her eyes until she sees a well known look in her husband's eyes. He wants sex, dirty hot sex. Derek drives home like the devil is after him and well in the trailer he orders.

"Take your clothes off and get into the shower" he says while stripping down his pants.

Well inside the tiny shower he attacks her throat with his lips and let is hands trace over her body. She can only obey him. It has been so long, to long.

Mark is carrying Meredith inside her house.

"Are you sure I can't share your room?" he whispers seductively tracing kisses down her jaw along her throat. She moans in reply before her senses catch up with her.

"I would really prefer to have you as my friend. You and I can never work in the long run and if you have me I will throw you out in the morning. That is what I do with all my one-night stands. It will mean you can't stay here."

Marks lips are doing wonders behind her ear but she will not get involved with him. She really wants him as a friend though. Mark wraps his arms tightly around her taking deep breaths. After a couple of minutes he let her go a little bit.

"I really want you but if you will throw me out afterwards I rather not have you if that means you'll be my friend."

Meredith nods in response before leaning in kissing his cheek softly and get one kiss in return.

"Izzy will show you the room. I want $ 250 in advance the first of every month. You split the grocery cost with the rest of us. Izzy cooks most meals but you are welcome to cook as well. I never cook and if you want a party you have to talk to us first. You can have people sleeping over but if it gets permanent they split costs too."

"You are bossy, I like it."

**This is still a MerDer story – just reminding you :)  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**This chapter begins the day after McSteamy arrived to Seattle and then moves the story a couple of months into the future. McSteamy will hang around from now on…**

**Chapter 11**

The following morning Derek wakes up with his wife wrapped around him. He feels lonely even though he is entangled with her. They accompany each other to the hospital. In the parking lot they see Mark helping Meredith out of his car. He is cradling her in his arms and both Shepherds stare at the couple as Mark gently seats her in her chair. Meredith laughs at something he says and slaps his arm while sticking her tongue out. Her giggle is heard over the area. As soon as she is seated she takes off in her chair leaving Mark to lock up his car before chasing her inside. The four of them catch up outside the elevator. Just before the door opens Mark gets called away by Dr Webber. He kisses Meredith quickly good bye on her cheek and nods curtly to the Shepherds. Derek is close to start boiling and walks stiffly into the now open elevator. The women follow closely behind. Meredith looks at the McMarried that refuses to look at each other or her.

"Are you two fighting or something?"

"No" they answer in union.

"Ok" she says giving them each a questionable look before exiting on her floor.

"Dr Grey is quite nosy and promiscuous, she is already bedding Mark" Addison remarks.

"Don't say anything about either Dr Grey or Mark" Derek says between gritted teeth.

Dr Bailey assigns Meredith to neuro and she just sighs. It is going to be a long day working with Dr Shepherd. During rounds she meets with Mr. Levangé who suffers from Parkinson's disease. He doesn't want to try DBS out of fear. They will just alleviate his back pain. His daughter on the other hand wants him to do the DBS. Meredith has a long talk with her and decides to talk to Dr Shepherd. She finds him in the viewing room looking at some scans of another case.

"Dr Shepherd" she says when he exits the room with Dr Bailey in tow.

"Yes, Dr Grey"

"Is Mr. Levangé a prime candidate for DBS?"

"Yes, but he doesn't want it."

"But if you spoke to him again…"

"Dr Grey, it is brain surgery done while the patient is awake. We are not convincing patients to undergo such surgeries. He has said no. We will however perform a spinal surgery to ease his back pain. If that is not enough for you then you're off this case. Go fish for more exciting surgeries with your boyfriend instead of nagging me."

Meredith can't believe what she hears but turns her chair around and starts rolling towards the nurses' station.

"Dr Grey wait for me" Dr Bailey calls after her.

Meredith lets her chair roll to a stop but doesn't turn around when she hears Dr Shepherd and Dr Bailey start a heated conversation. She can't hear what they say but it seems like Dr Bailey is the one talking. Dr Bailey comes up towards her and says.

"You are with me. Do the pre-op on my gastric bypass and meet me in the OR."

Meredith is scrubbing out when she get's a page to Mr. Levangé's room. She hurries there and is met by Dr Shepherd.

"Mr. Levangé has agreed to do the DBS if you are in the OR Dr Grey" Dr Shepherd says.

"Oh, but Dr Bailey…" she trails off when she sees Dr Shepherds face.

"I will clear it with her" Dr Shepherd cuts her off. "You prep for surgery in an hour. See you there Mr. Levangé." He gives Meredith a curt nod before leaving the room.

"My father like skinny blondes" the daughter of Mr. Levangé says looking at her tiredly.

"Sorry I'm rude but I'm so very tired."

"It's OK, I understand. Let's get your father prepped for the surgery."

The surgery is a success and Meredith scrubs out feeling happy for Mr. Levangé and his daughter. Derek catches up with her in the scrubroom.

"Mark is a man-whore"

"What?"

"Mark is a man-whore and I think you should know that before it is too late."

"Too late for what?"

Derek just glares at her and pulls a couple of towels from the dispenser.

"Too late for what, Dr Shepherd?"

"Don't fall for him, he will just make you miserable" Derek says before hurrying out the door.

The next couple of weeks turn into months and Meredith and her friends becomes more and more skilled in the care of patients and are allowed to do more in surgeries. They begin to know what to specialize in. Yang goes for cardio, Izzy to neonatal, Alex to plastics or neo and George towards trauma. Meredith is sure of neuro. She is getting more and more time with Dr Shepherd in the OR and he has begun to treat her like she is not on wheels any longer. One day they all get summoned to meet with their resident in the conference room. Dr Webber meets them with a somber face, lined by worry lines.

"My niece has been diagnosed with advanced cancer I have decided to let her have a prom here at the hospital. You will all help out and the party will be tomorrow evening. All interns, residents and attending surgeons will have mandatory attending this event."

Meredith and her fellow interns stare at each other while Dr Bailey gets their assignment. They are on the decoration detail and will together with Dr Webber's niece and her best friends decide on color theme and stuff. After a couple of nerve wrecking hours it is decided that they should have black, white and silver.

The following day Meredith is blowing up balloons when Mark peaks through the door.

"Do you want to be my date on prom?" he asks with a boyish smile.

"Me, date, your prom date?" Meredith stutters.

"Yeah"

"Why?"

"I like you and I don't have a date for the event."

"But I'm on wheels. I can't dance."

"So, is dancing mandatory for dates?"

"No, but on prom it is kind of the goal."

"This is not prom for us. We are just there to fill out the space so the chick can have the feeling of a real prom."

"Ok, if that is the purpose then I guess I can be your date."

"Fine, we'll leave the house around six thirty."

"I'll be ready."

Mark leaves the room and can see the Shepherds at the nurses' station. He can't but give them a sting.

"Oh, Mer" he calls turning back towards the room with all the balloons. "Please wear something sexy for me!"

Meredith looks out the door with a giggle in her voice.

"Sure can do Mark"

Derek looks at Addison and notices her frown and her eyes glued on Mark. Mark sends her a smirk and raises his eyebrow.

"What's your problem?"

"Why are you asking Dr Grey as your date?"

"Have you run out of nurses?"

"No, I just want to have a sexy date for prom. A date with something in her head."

"But she can't dance" Addison blurted out.

"So?"

"She can't dance, why would you or anyone want to have her as a prom-date?"

"Maybe because of her." Mark said through gritted teeth.

"Addison, why can't Mark ask her?" Derek asks his wife puzzled.

"Because she is a wanna-be surgeon in a wheel-chair. She is a joke. She lives on her famous mother's reputation and she can never fill her mother's shoes."

Mark and Derek stare at her, their mouths slightly opened out of shock. Addison glares at them and storms off towards her own department. Mark and Derek leaves in different directions. None of the three realizes that Meredith has heard it all. She slowly makes a knot on the balloon she is holding in her hands. Her friends don't know what to say and stay quiet continuing with the balloons. Meredith takes a deep breath and asks her friends.

"Is this what everyone thinks of me? That I'm a wanna-be? Living on my mother's rep?"  
She looks at her friends whom don't want to look at her. She swirls her chair around and leaves the room and her so called friends behind.

Meredith rolls onto the elevator aiming for going to the roof. She needs some alone time and get her focus back. To bad the elevator is not empty. Dr Webber is in there.

"How is the party planning progressing, Dr Grey?"

Meredith looks up with tears in her eyes.

"Fine, just fine Dr Webber"

"Meredith"

"Yeah"

"What's going on?"

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"You are not fine. Come with me to my office and we'll talk."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes, there are some things I've been waiting to talk to you about."

Meredith lets out a heavy sigh and follows Dr Webber to his office when the elevator reaches his floor. Well inside the office Dr Webber lowers the shades and before turning to her.

"Talk to me, Meredith"

"Am I a wanna-be living on my mother's reputation?"

"No, you are a very talented surgeon and will excel in neuro."

"I am?"

"Yes Meredith, every attending has left standing ovation on your work except Dr Shepherd."

"Then how can I excel in neuro?"

"Oh, not Derek, Addison has not seen your potential yet."

"She is the one that called me a wanna-be living on my mother's reputation."

"I'm not really sure what is wrong with her but she has very high thought about herself and her title. Derek is nothing like her in that area."

"Yeah, right"

"Meredith you have only one thing that you need to do twice every year and I'm still missing your first checkup. I need your latest scans. They are a condition for your employment as you know."

"Oh, I have forgotten, I'll have them done and analyzed as soon as possible."

"Have Dr Shepherd to take a look."

"No I won't do that. I will send the scans to my doctor."

"Why don't you want Dr Shepherd, who works here and has an outstanding reputation to look at them?"

"It is not in my condition to have a doctor on this hospital to evaluate the scans and I want my doctor to do it."

"Ok but I want those results soon. Now go home and put on a nice party dress and get yourself back here before the party."


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you all of my reviewers, you make it very enjoyable and funny to post this fic.  
~mcanna**

**Chapter 12**

Mark drove Meredith to the prom. She was wearing a black dress with silver lining and showing off a large diamond resting between her breasts. Mark had trouble keeping his eyes from her. She was stunning. Outside the hospital they were met by Alex who took care of Meredith's chair while Mark carried her inside. The three of them were chatting about the day and the prom and didn't notice how their fellow colleges stared at them. Gossiping about how her head was resting on Mark's chest and his hands gripping her as he carried her with ease. Well inside the elevator going up to the party Mark positioned Meredith back into her chair.

"Do you want a drink?" Mark asked Meredith when they exit the lift.

"Yeah, thanks that would be nice."

"I'll be back in a while" he responded.

"He'll be trying to score with a nurse for later tonight" Alex whispered to Meredith who responded with a giggle.

Derek heard her giggle and turned took look for her. He was standing by the fruit punch waiting for Addison. Meredith passed him on her way towards a table with her intern friends. Addison showed up and asked him for a dance. He really didn't want to dance but felt he couldn't deny her one since it was a slow rhythm. They entered the dance floor as he saw Mark handing Meredith a drink and receiving a peck on his cheek as a thank you. He circled slowly around the dance floor with Addison and they danced in silence until Addison said:

"Dr Grey is a true slut. She is doing Mark and doesn't hide it either."

"What?"

"She is all giggly and touchy. Did you see Mark carrying her into the hospital tonight? Her head resting on his shoulder and all the little kisses she gives him.

"If I didn't believe that you had broken up with Mark I would say that you are jealous."

"I'm not jealous and you know that I'm all into saving our marriage. I just don't like Dr Grey."

Mark is whispering in Meredith's ear.

"I have a hot one over by the bar that wants my attention. Are you OK here for a while?"

"Yeah, but remember, no glove no love. I'll catch a ride with George and Izzy back to the house if you're staying out late." She pecks his cheek and watches him leave with a smile on her face.

Addison excuses herself from Derek:

"Dr Webber is waving me over, can you get me something to drink?"

"Sure, I'll find us a table"

He watches his wife walk out of the room but can't see Dr Webber anywhere. After picking up two glasses of wine he looks for an empty table but can only see empty chairs. There are a couple of free ones at the intern table and since he can't see anyone he recognizes at any other table he walks over to Meredith.

"Is this a good place to hang out?"

Meredith turns and looks at him before returning her gaze over to the dance floor.

"Are you ignoring me?"

"Trying to"

"You shouldn't ignore me. If you get to know me, you will love me."

"Is that so? You are really sure of yourself."

"Just hiding my pain."

"So what is your story?"

"I'm just a girl at prom."

"I'm just a guy at prom."

Meredith can't hold her giggle any more.

"You are a truly goofy podiatrist, Dr Shepherd."

"Please call med Derek."

"Derek, please call me Meredith or Mer"

"Cheers Mer"

"Cheers" they raise their drinks and stare at each other in silence.

"Did you go to your high school prom?" Derek asks her suddenly.

"No, I was the angry girl dressed in black with pink hair. Prom was for band nerds."

"Excuse me, but I was a band nerd and I didn't go to my prom either. I didn't have a date. It was before I discovered the use of hair products."

"Now you over use them" she replies with a giggle.

"No, it would be an afro if I didn't do anything."

"Really" she looks at his hair with a curios look. "I would like to see that. Can't you wear that some day?"

"No way, it would ruin my reputation."

"Where is your wife?"

"I don't know. Dr Webber wanted to speak with her. Where is Mark?"

"Mark had a hot date." Meredith watched Dr Webber dancing with his wife.

"Hot date? Aren't you his date for tonight?"

"We are only here as friends."

"So you are not dating him?"

"Never, he is a man whore. I would never date him or do him. We are only friends and I'm his landlord."

"I thought you were dating."

They continue chatting and teasing while they wait for her friends and his wife to reappear.

A couple of nurses passed by them talking about the latest gossip and finding seats at the next table.

"Did you girls know that Dr McSteamy was seen entering an exam room a while ago?"

"Yeah, and Debbie heard moaning and screams from an exam room just a little while ago after hearing loud arguing shortly before."

"I saw Dr Montgomery-Shepherd with Dr Webber and a third party talking by the exam rooms."

"But Dr Webber has been dancing with his wife the last half hour."

"Hi, sweet heart" Meredith is gripped by her shoulders from behind and tries to escape Mark's tickling fingers poking her ribs.

"Already back?"

"Yeah, I met with Dr Webber and Addison and then I came here to you, my darling." Mark turns around and sends a flirty look at the next table when he hears them giggle and McName him.

"Have you seen Addison?"

"Yeah I saw her by the exam rooms" Mark answers Derek, still distracted by the nurses.

Derek is gripping his wineglass like a vise when his pager goes off.

"911 the Pit" he says to Meredith after a glance at his pager and he storms off after a last look at Mark.

"Want to go home?" Mark asks Meredith.

"Yes please, I have an early appointment."

Meredith and Mark leave the prom after saying good night to some mutual friends. When they enter the parking lot they can see Addison getting into a cab.

"Want to go for a drink before heading home?"

"No thank you" Meredith replied. "I've an early appointment with the MRI-machine."

"What, why?"

"Yeah, my residency has a clause that stipulates new scans of my tumor every six  
months. I've been too busy and Dr Webber is forcing this on me now."

"OK, let's get you home then."

"Mark… can you please not tell anyone? I don't want people to gossip about me."

"How will you ever keep that a secret? The hospital is a bee heave of gossip."

"Yeah, but my appointment is for six am and everyone will be busy with rounds."

"OK, at least I know that Derek will keep his mouth shut."

"Derek? What does he have to do with my MRI?"

"Isn't he your doctor?"

"No, my doctor is in Boston, Doctor William Anderson."

"So, you are not going to switch? Derek is the best."

"I know but since I'm not a surgical case it is not interesting for a surgeon."

"How do you know that?"

"It's inoperable."

"Says who? Derek?"

"None of all the specialists my mother contacted when I was diagnosed were even close to wanting to do the surgery."

"Have Derek seen your scans?"

"No, and he never will."

"Why?"

"I'm fine, I have accepted my life. This is me. I'm on wheels and I'm doing just fine."

Meredith wraps her arms around herself and stares out the window. Looking into the dark Seattle night her face is turned away but Mark can see her stubborn tilt of her chin and her squared shoulders.

"Sorry, I overstepped, please forgive me Meredith."

She keeps her eyes trained out the window but a small hitch is heard in her voice.

"Everyone just wants me to be like them, walking… I miss running and dancing but I have to accept my life and do what ever I can to live it… and it have one big advantage…"

"What?"

"I always have my own seat."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Meredith was at the hospital a quarter to six and took the shortest route to radiology. She was met by a technician that helped her move over to the bed before starting the MRI. She was laying there listening to the banging of the machine thinking about her tumor. This was one of the few times she allowed herself to think "what if". The banging ended and she felt the bed move out from the MRI.

"I will check the results, which seem to be OK, and then send them to your physicians" the tech said.

"The name of my doctor is in my file and he will accept them electronically."

"OK, will do Dr Grey."

"Thank you" Meredith looked at her watch and decided to grab some breakfast before her shift started.

Dr Webber and the new Head of Radiology Dr Charles Pemberton were walking towards the nurses' station on the surgical floor.

"Dr Shepherd, are you still here or are you just in?"

"Emergency surgery on a hit and run and I've been here since yesterday."

"Did you have the opportunity to meet Dr Pemberton at the prom yesterday?"

"No" Derek looked at the man standing beside Dr Webber. The man was trying to flirt with one of the nurses and didn't pay much attention to neither him nor Richard. Oh a second man whore, how nice.

"Dr Pemberton, this is our Head of Neurology Dr Derek Shepherd. Derek this is Dr Charles Pemberton our new Head of Radiology."

The two men shook hands and Richard motioned Derek to follow them.

"Derek, we were on our way to the coffee cart. Care to join us?"

"Thanks, yes I was on my way there myself."

The men were in line when Richards pager went off.

"You carry on. I'll be down in the pit for a while." Richard hurries off.

"Will you be doing the surgery on the spinal tumor that was up in the MRI this morning?" Dr Pemberton asks as he receives his coffee.

"What spinal tumor? I have no patients with that."

"Oh, the tech was checking some scans on a huge tumor. Looked inoperable to me but I've heard that you are very good."

"This must be something new. Can you show me? It sounds intriguing." Derek gives Pemberton a small smile.

The two men walk towards radiology and many nurses and female staff turn their heads looking at the two handsome doctors. Both of them taller then average, well groomed, one dark and one blond, in their late thirties and well known doctors.

"Where are you from?"

"I'm from Boston General. You are from New York, right?"

"Yeah, I've been here for six months."

"This is an amazing hospital. Do they have a beauty paragraph in the female-staffs contract? I have never in my life met so many stunning colleges. I met a beautiful red-headed doctor yesterday and she really showed me all the possibilities of the exam rooms."

Derek stops in his own tracks, stunned by the other doctor's word.

"What was the red-heads name?"

"Allison or something similar, do you know her? Can you re-introduce me?"

"I'm not sure who you mean."

They reached the scan room and Derek is looking through the last hours of pictures.

"I've seen a tumor like this once in Boston. A young girl if I remember."

"Did she do the surgery?"

"No, the opinion was that it was too dangerous."

"Oh, here it is" Derek says and by pressing a few keys the images are shown on all the large screens in front of the two doctors.

"Yeah, this is the one. Huge but beautiful in all its ugliness" Pemberton says.

Derek is studying the scans in silence when the door burst open and Mark enters the room.

"Oh, Shepherd and… was it Pemberton?" Mark says.

Derek wakes up from his contemplations of the scans.

"Oh, Dr Sloan, what are you doing here?"

"Scattered jaw, doing an implantation later today."

"Dr Pemberton I assume you already met Dr Mark Sloan, Head of Plastics?"

"Yes, we met yesterday at the prom."

"Yeah, you were shown around by Addison."

"Yes, Addison, that was her name. I haven't seen her yet today could you re-introduce her to me?"

Mark looks at Derek before answering Pemberton.

"I think her husband would be the better one to introduce Dr Addison Forbes Montgomery-Shepherd to you." Mark says with a smirk.

Derek looks at the two doctors in the room like he has never seen them in his life, turns for the door and leaves before any of them utters a word. Mark and Pemberton look at each other. Pemberton slumps down in a chair slowly shaking his head and Mark looks at him with questions in his eyes. After a couple of minutes Pemberton speaks.

"My mother and my friends have always told me that my one-night stands will kick my ass one day. This far it never happened, until today, my first day at this hospital. What shall I do? I don't know? I will have to work with Dr Shepherd. How can I do that when I slept with his wife? I even bragged about all the beautiful colleges here and told him about how she showed me all the possibilities of an exam room." He rubs his face with hands and slowly shakes his head before looking at Mark.

"I'm in the same position Dr Pemberton."

"Call me Charles."

"OK, you can call me Mark since I've done the same thing."

"What, have you slept with her too?"

"Yeah, in New York. Shep and I grow up together like brothers and I was his best man at his and Addie's wedding. They drifted apart and got too involved in their work and Addie and I had sex one night in their bed… he caught us and transferred here to Seattle. Addie moved after him to try to re-conciliate their marriage and I came here to try and get his forgiveness, he is my best male-friend."

"Has he forgiven you?"

"Nope" Mark looks at the screens and sees the tumor. "What were you doing in here?"

"I told him about this huge tumor I saw this morning and he wanted to see it."

Mark takes a closer look and realizes that it is Meredith's scans.

"These scans belong to another doctor, in Boston, I believe. They are not for Shepherd."

"How do you know that? And why are they here?"

"It is a friend of mine and she doesn't want anyone here to see them. She just had them made for her employer."

"You said Boston?"

"Yes, I believe her doctor is there."

"I've seen her scans before. Is she still OK? Her mother was turning the world of neurology up-side down in search for a surgeon that dared to remove it and had the track record to prove he could."

"She is amazing."

Derek went straight to the OR-board checking if Addison had any scheduled surgeries but she was not up there. Dr Webber came and stood beside him.

"Dr Shepherd, what is up with your wife? Is everything OK? She called in and asked for time off."

"She did what?"

"Asked for personal time. Is there something I need to know?"

"No but there are things I need to know. I need the day off as well."

"Are you up on the board, today?"

"Yes but it is an elective surgery and I can re-schedule for later this week."

"OK, you can take today off."

"Thank you sir."

Derek walks quickly to his office and changes his scrubs for street clothes. He really needed to think about all this. Had she really had sex with Dr Pemberton? He walked along the deck looking at the skyline of Seattle pondering over different scenarios. Well at his trailer he found it deserted, Addison's car was not in her spot. He opened the trailer door and stepped inside. It was neat but empty. The closet was opened and he could see that his clothes were the only ones in there. Addison's shoeboxes were gone as was her make-up things from the minimal bathroom. On the small kitchen table he found a note and an envelope.

_Dear Derek,_

_I'm so sorry for what I've done to you, not once but twice. It is all on me. I seduced the new Head of Radiology yesterday at the prom. Why? I don't know._

_I have packed all my things and taken a leave of absence from Seattle Grace Hospital. I don't plan on ever coming back. In the envelope are our divorce papers. I've signed and you only have to do the same and hand them to our lawyers._

_I wish you all the best and will always cherish our marriage even though I'm the one breaking my vows to you. Do me one last favor. Make friends with Mark again and if possible the new Head of Radiology. They have no part in this._

_Love you always,_

_Addison Forbes Montgomery _

Derek read the short letter twice before he grabbed a beer out of the fridge and brought the envelope with him out to his deckchair. He sat down sipped on his beer and looked on the view for a long time before he slowly pulled the stack of paper out of the envelope and began to read. When dusk came he pulled out a pen and signed the papers before putting them back into the envelope. On his way to bed he put the envelope in his car. Well inside he changed his mind, made a quick sandwich before going down to his lake for some fishing.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Meredith had the next day off and planned to make visit to her mother and to work out. Mark was in the kitchen when she got in there in search for coffee. He looked up from his paper and asked if she wanted breakfast.

"No thank you. I've got to run to an appointment and will have something to eat there."

"OK"

"Are you off today?"

"Yeah, but for a consult at ten a clock.

"Would you like to go swimming at my gym?"

"You swim?"

"Yeah and then I lift some weights. I need to keep my torso strong."

"I have not been working out since I got here but for my running."

"I have this thing I need to do first but let's meet at YMCA downtown at noon."  
Meredith grabbed her coffee in a to-go cup and picked up her bag before heading out the door.

Meredith arrived to her mother's nursing home and found that her mother was becoming sicker. She had trouble eating and slept most of her day. Meredith had a short meeting with the attending nurse and was told to prepare herself. Her mother might die soon. Meredith reconfirmed her mother's wish on treatment and left for the gym. She stopped at a drive-thru and got a sandwich. At the YMCA she checked in and waited for Mark to show up.

"Hi" she heard from behind.

"Hi Mark" she checked him out. He looked a little down or strange.

"How was the consult?"

"OK, a new nose."

She saw that that was not his problem and said.

"I'll meet you at the pool. I'll be the one in a green swimsuit and goggles."

Mark looked at her with a smile and an almost twinkle in his eyes.

"I'll be the one in Speedos."

Meredith changes in the locker room and headed off toward the pool. Her personal trainer was waiting with her floating device and helped her strap them to her legs. Mark was already in the pool and showed up by her side.

"Do you need any help?"

"No, Nick will help me" she gave her trainer a smile.

"60 laps today" Nick said.

"Oh, I don't want to" she whined.

"No excuse, do it."

"That was harsh" Mark said not liking the trainer one bit.

"It's his job to get me to do it" Meredith sighed. "I even pay him for torturing me."

"Yes you do Mer and stop talking and get at it."

Mark watched as Nick carefully lifted Meredith out her chair and then unceremoniously dumped her into the pool. Mark was quickly at her side with a frown at his face.

"What the hell are you doing" he growled towards Nick.

"What?" Nick said while busing himself with moving the chair further away from the water.

Mark ignored him as he watched how Meredith swam like a dolphin in the water and she splashed him.

"Come on Mark; let's do this if you can muster."

Mark matched his stokes with Meredith's and they started their laps. Every tenth lap Nick leaned over the side and gave them an update on how far they had left. Meredith swam at a steady pace and Mark was stunned by her tempo. He was having trouble keeping up. Finally the laps were done.

"What now?" he asked Meredith trying to catch his breath.

"Now we race. I'll bet I can win a lap if you are only to use your arms as I do."

"What do you bet?"

"A night a Joe's, you pick up my tab or I pick up yours."

"OK, you're up"

"Nick can you strap in Mark's legs?" Meredith turned towards Nick who was waiting on the side.

"OK" he said and pulled out a second floating device except for the strap that Meredith's had.

Mark grabbed it and positioned himself by Meredith's side.

"Remember, you can not use your legs. That will be cheating. Nick will start us and be the judge."

Nick counted to three and the two of them took off. Halfway down the pool Mark's floating device escaped from between his legs and flew up on the side of the pool. Meredith kept swimming as Mark had to catch the device and slowly paddle the rest of the lap.

"Two out of three" he said when he reached Meredith.

"OK" she giggled. "One more time Nick"

"No, two more times" Mark corrected.

"In your dreams McSteamy" Meredith took off on three and Mark really tried to beat her but his arms didn't manage any longer.

"Joe's tonight, looser" Meredith giggled again and heaved herself up on the side.

Mark just shook his head and acknowledged his defeat.  
Nick lifted Meredith back into her chair where her towel was now resting. Ready to wrap her into it.

"Don't feel sorry for yourself. Meredith could make the Paralympics if she wanted to"

Nick said to Mark while grabbing Meredith's floating device. "Mer, you'll only need to do some stomach-pain."

"Bring it on Nick, but only if you make Mark suffer along with me."

"I'll do it" Mark said heaving himself out of the water. The water streaming down his lean muscled torso and as promised he wore a pair of very small Speedos.

Meredith watched as Nick looked him over. "Down boy, he is very straight as most of the female hospital staff can testify" Meredith whispered as Nick lifted her over to a bench for some stomach exercise.

"One hundred stomach crunches" Nick ordered as Meredith and Mark began.

An hour later they met outside the locker rooms and decided that they needed something to eat. Mark looks at Meredith over the menu at a diner.

"You are a very good swimmer"

"Yeah, I'm OK, but so are you. Most of those that I swim with are left behind after less then twenty laps."

"I did some swimming and water polo in college."

"So did I, swimming that is."

"Could you really make the Paralympics-team?"

"Maybe, they asked me while in med-school but I declined."

"Why did you do that?"

"It was too much work and I want to become a neurosurgeon not a swimmer."

"But the Olympics Meredith."

"Yes but then everyone had to know about my tumor and I don't want that."

Mark pales as he remembers the scan room yesterday morning.

"Mer, I believe your scans are not that secret. I found Shep and the new Head of Radiology Dr Pemberton in the scan room yesterday morning looking at them."

"They did what!"

"I believe it was Pemberton that spoke about the scans as he saw them on his tour with Dr Webber and he thought Shep was the attending on the case."

"Bugger"

"My sentiment exactly"

"The good thing is that Shepherd learned something about his wife that made him leave the hospital for the day."

They ordered their late lunch or maybe it was an early dinner.

"You watch Mama Mia the movie, right?" Meredith asked with a smirk.

"Please don't tell. I'll lose my image."

Derek was working or kind of working. He refused surgeries since he didn't feel totally focused and spent his day catching up on paper work when Dr Webber entered his room and closed the door behind him.

"Derek, can you please explain why Addison has sent in her resignation and taken an absent of leave until its final?"

"Richard, I'm not sure I can."

"Are your resignation also in the mail or are you working on it right at this moment?"

"No, I'm not resigning."

"Good… good then explain why Addison is."

Derek looked down on his papers spread all over his desk. His personal life felt as messy.

"Richard, I handed in signed divorce paper this morning."

"You did what?"

"When I came home yesterday morning the paper was on my table signed by Addison."

"What happened?"

"She confessed to having had a second affair with a colleague in a letter to me" Derek keeps his eyes down.

"She did what? I'll fire that bastard!" Richard yelled.

"Who, did you know?"

"Mark of course, I will have his note of resigning before lunch." Richard turns to open the door. His hand on the door handle.

"Stop Richard, it was not Mark this time."

"Who was it?" Richard turns and asks, searching for the answer in Derek's eyes.

"I know who and so does Mark but I don't want to tell you since Addison asked me to forgive the man and make friends with Mark again. She claims it was on her initiative and since I've heard him tell about it I believe her."

"Are you OK?"

"Almost, I don't want to cut today since I feel unfocused but I feel remarkable good. Not anything like when it was Mark."

"You tell me if you need some time off! I don't want any lapses due to your personal life."

"Sure, I'll be careful"

"You should hand over all simple surgery to your attending and residents and solely focus on the cases were you are the only one that can do it."

"Sure" Derek answers and watches as Richard leave the room.

Derek finishes his paperwork and walks towards the gallery. When he passes the scan room he changes his mind as he remembers the tumor from yesterday. That would be something to work on. Just as he opens the door his pager goes off. 911 from the OR were one of his attending was removing a tumor. He takes off with a run.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Meredith and Mark are accompanying each other to work and they both feel a little hang-over since their outing at Joe's the night before.

"I still can't believe that you turned down the Paralympics" Mark says on his way into the elevator.

"Shut up Mark" Meredith mutters rolling in after him.

"But you could have…"

"Could, would, should are words I never liked when spoken by others to me" Meredith almost yells at Mark.

The other passengers in the car turn and stares at Meredith.

"Sorry guys, but he is a big moron and nags all the time."

"I'm not"

"Oh, just shut up. I don't want anyone to talk about my already made decisions."

"But…"

"No but Mark, let's get to work" Meredith says while wheeling off the elevator towards the interns locker room.

Mark makes his way towards his office when his cell starts vibrating. When he looks at it he sees the name ´NancyPants´ flashing on the screen.

"Hi Nancy" he answers with a smile.

"Hi Loser" he hears.

"Long time"

"Yeah, your fault"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, How are everyone?"

"Fine, can you tell me about Derek? What the hell has he done to Addie?"

"Done to Addie? I don't follow."

"Addie called and said she was sorry and that it was over."

"What was over?"

"Her and Derek"

"I haven't seen either her or Derek since the day before yesterday." Mark sees Derek's scrubcap moving towards the elevator. "I'll call you back later after I've had a chat with him."

"OK, but just to warn you. Mum is on her way. She'll be there tonight."

"She's what?"

"She's on a plane. She took off with in the minute after Addie called her."

"Great, just great. I really need to warn him. Bye Nancy I'll call you if I survive mum."

Mark puts his phone in his pockets. Derek is already in the elevator and Mark decides to take the stairs. He catches up with Derek in the line to the coffee cart.

"Hey man, do you have time to talk?" Mark asks Derek grabbing his standard order of a extra dry cappuccino.

"Patient's being prepped as we speak. Can we talk and walk?"

"OK, I'll make it short but you will need to calm down before your surgery."

"What is it" Derek looks over at Mark while waiting for the elevator.

"Mum is on a plane here as we speak."

"She's what? Why?"

"Why is my question to you."

"Oh no, not this as well"

"Oh yes, tell me" Mark urges him as they step into an empty car.

"No, it's none of your business"

"Is that what you're going to tell mum when she arrives?" Mark gives him a smirk.

"No" Derek heaves a deep sigh.

"Then spill, I know some parts but would prefer to hear from you."

They reach the OR-floor and both leaves the car. Derek makes a beeline for the staff lounge with Mark in tow.

"Mark, Addie and I have filed for divorce as of yesterday."

"You have?"

"Yeah, Addie packed while I was in surgery the night after prom and left signed divorce papers and a letter of explanation on the table."

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah, strangely I am."

"Really? You were a wreck after…"

"Yesterday was a little rocky but I'm OK today."

"Is it because of what Pemberton said?"

"Yeah, she writes that she took the initiative and that I should try to make friends with you again."

"You should, I've missed you" Mark said with a small smile and continued "I'm sorry for my part in your divorce."

"Mm"

"Nancy called me less then an hour ago and told me that Addie had called and said she was sorry. Mum got a phone call as well and that is why she is on her way."

"What shall we do?"

"One or both of us need to meet her at the airport."

"I've surgeries the whole afternoon. My last begins a six. I don't expect to get out of here before ten." Derek says.

"I have only one starting at one. What time will she be here?"

"Let's ask Patricia to find out what flight she is on. If we are both in surgery we can have a town car to pick her up.

Mark left to change into scrubs and talk to Patricia and Derek left for his surgery. Meredith was scrubbing in with him on the first one. He had different interns on each surgery so they all got the opportunity to study and prepare for it. Meredith had become his favorite intern since she always was well prepared and already possessed the skills equal to second or third year residents. The surgery was proceeding according to plans and Derek wanted to talk.

"Dr Grey"

"Yes Dr Shepherd" Meredith looked up shortly from the clamp she was holding.

"I'm curious but you don't have to answer this question."

"What?"

"Why are you in a wheelchair? Is it because of a birth defect or an accident?"

"Neither"

"Neither?"

"Neither and I don't want to discuss it sir."

Mark was waiting outside the OR when the surgery was over after another successful procedure.

"Thank you Dr Grey, you did great today and sorry for my nosy question."

"Thank you Dr Shepherd" Meredith said on her way out the door. "I'm following the patient to post-op."

"Hi" Mark said after giving Meredith a wave.

"Hi, did you get the flight information?"

"Yeah, she'll arrive at three thirty and I can pick her up."

"Fine, can you take her to the Archfield and tell her that I can squeeze in a quick dinner with you guys around five?"

"Sure, I'll see you around" Mark walks off towards his next patient.

Mark is a little late out from his surgery. The patient had a small bleed that prolonged the surgery. He jumped into his street clothes and ran for his car. When he sat down and turned the ignition he only heard a high pitching noise. Two more attempts with the same results.

"Damn" he hits the steering wheel and checks his clock before deciding to catch one of the many cabs outside the main entrée.  
On his way over the parking lot he sees Meredith on her way into her car and he gets an idée.

"Mer, wait"

Meredith looks across the lot and can see Mark running towards her.

"Mer, can you do me a favor?"

"What?"

"Are you free?"

"Yeah, eighty hour rule."

"My car wont start and I really need to get to the airport asap."

"What's up?"

"Mum is coming since my brother has filed for divorce."

"Derek has what?"

"If you take me to the airport I'll fill you in."

"OK" she presses the button that swirls her into the driver's seat while Mark stuffs her chair behind her seat and jumps in shotgun."

Mark talks almost the whole time about Derek and Addison's divorce. When Meredith drives up to the entre of the arrivals at the airport she has to tell him to get out and find Mrs. Shepherd. Mark jumps out a little pale since this is the first time he sees her after he had the affair with Addison. Meredith can see how he slows down when he sees a woman in her mid sixties wave at him. Mrs. Shepherd is standing under the cover to keep out of the light drizzle. Mark wraps her in a bear-hug. After a couple of minutes they both take a step back and starts talking and then Meredith sees how Mrs. Shepherd reaches up and hits the back of his head. Mark's hand reaches up and Meredith can see how he says ouch. She starts to giggle. Mark picks up Mrs. Shepherd's overnight bag and they walk towards the car. He opens the front passenger door and says while he helps Mrs. Shepherd to step in.

"Mum, this is my very good friend and colleague Dr Meredith Grey. Meredith this is mine and Derek's mum Mrs. Carolyn Shepherd."

Meredith greats Mrs. Shepherd and receives a warm smile in return.

"It is very nice to meet you Mrs. Shepherd and welcome to Seattle."

"The same and thank you dear. Is it true that you are only a colleague to my boys?"

"Yes it is true. I am a colleague to Dr Shepherd and Mark, but I am also Mark's landlord."

"Mum, don't grill Meredith, she was kind to help me out when my car refused to start at the hospital."

"That's very nice of you. I hope we are not keeping you from anyone."

"No problem Mrs. Shepherd, I had reached my eighty hours work limit and was only going home to do laundry and cleaning stuff."

"Mum, Meredith is a surgical intern."

"I remember when you, Derek and Addison were interns. You only worked or slept and your apartment looked like something I don't want to say."

"Those were the days. Meredith can you drop us off at the Archfield?"

"Sure but how do you get to the hospital?"

"We'll walk or take a cab."

"Izzy and George are ending their shift later. You can catch a ride with them home."

"OK"

they reach the hotel Meredith drives up under the entre and Mark and Mrs. Shepherd exits the car. When Mark has fetched the luggage from the trunk he walks around the car, up to the driver's side of the car opens the door and leans in for a quick peck on Meredith's cheek.

"I'm off to YMCA and some more torturing before doing laundry" Meredith smiles and gives Mrs. Shepherd a wave and a smile before driving off.

"That is a really nice girl. A girl like her would be perfect for you."

"She doesn't want me."

"What?"

"She doesn't want me as a boyfriend but she wants to be my friend and as right now she is my best friend. For a while here she's been my only friend since Derek hasn't wanted anything to do with me. That has changed the last couple of weeks or mainly today. Today was the first time we spoken and neither has become mad."

"That's an understandable consequence of the affair."

Derek hurries out the elevator after his third surgery this day. The large one was the one in the morning with Meredith and now the three in the afternoon are minor procedures. He doesn't want any more today but knows that an emergency always takes president over an elective one. He can see Mark and his mum already in the cafeteria with three trays in front of them so he hurries over.

"Mum, hi" he says and leans down to give her a hug before sliding down in the chair beside her.

"Look at you. You look tired. Are you sure you should be working?"

"I'm fine mum" he mutters.

"Speak up young man."

"I'm OK mum. I've just finished my third surgery of the day and have one more to go. It starts at six and I have to be there in forty-five minutes."

"It doesn't give me much time to talk to you about your last stupid actions."

"Mum, can we talk about that tomorrow? I will not be out of here until after ten tonight. I really need to be calm and focused for my fourth surgery."

"Mum, please tell us about the girls and their kids" Mark says well aware of the consequences of negative stress before a surgery.

They changes their focus of their talking and are soon heard laughing at stories about their young nieces and nephews.


	16. Chapter 16

**A big thank you to all of my reviewers. You really make me keen on writing more. :)**

**~mcanna**

**Chapter 16**

Derek and Mark spend the next few days alternating between the hospital and entertaining Mrs. Shepherd. Derek and his mum have a long discussion about his upcoming divorce and Mrs. Shepherd sees his point of view. She is disappointed that he is in a divorce but since it is not his choice and he really tried to work out his marriage she can't really blame him. Derek is content with it but still hasn't heard anything from Addison or the lawyers. It is late and he is on-call with a critical patient during the night. The surgery was successful but the patient was still critical. He might need to go in again. After a visit to the post-op he goes for a coffee. What should he do now? He is up to date with his paper work and the pit is slow. He passes the radiology and suddenly he remembers the scans of the tumor he saw earlier. He brings his coffee to the viewing room and starts to search for the scans. They are not in the file for patients in the hospital and not in the file for released patients. He slowly scans the page and in the file for patients from other hospitals he finally finds them. A quick command and the screens around him are all filled with the different images of this giant tumor. At first sight it looks inoperable but there is no such thing according to him. There are always ways to do it. He just has to find its way. The tumor is beautiful in all its ugliness. After studying it for a long time he searches for the patient history but can't find anything. Strange, he thinks. Why would they have the scans but no patient information? He finds the email address to the doctor receiving the scans and in the spur of the moment he sends an email to the doctor.

_Dear Doctor_

_My name is Dr Derek Shepherd and I am the Head of Neurology at Seattle Grace Hospital. You received some scans taken of a giant spinal tumor a couple of days ago here at SGH. I have studied these scans and I am intrigued. If you are not doing this surgery I would like to meet your patient. I believe I can do this surgery successfully if the nerves are not damaged. If you are doing the surgery I would be honored if I could scrub in and observe._

_Yours sincerely_

_Dr Derek Shepherd_

Meredith is slowly getting out of bed. It is her first day back since the last eighty hour rule. In the kitchen she finds her cup full of coffee and when opening the front door Mark stops her.

"Mer, can I have a ride?"

"Didn't you have a date?"

"Yeah" he smiles.

"Where is she?"

"I threw her out at one"

"That was harsh"

"I don't cuddle. When I'm done I leave or they leave."

"Man whore"

"Thank you" he replies and chases her to her car.

Mrs. Shepherd enters the cafeteria at lunch time. She is to have lunch with Mark and Derek before her flight home. Both of her boys arrive shortly after and they all get a tray and their preferred lunch, a sandwich for Mrs. Shepherd and salad for Derek and Mark. They have just sat down when Meredith sees them as she is coming into the cafeteria after doing post-op on her last patient she had with Derek. She wheels over and grabs Mark's bottle of water and pours it over his head.

"This is for spreading words about my personal life…" she says.

Derek starts to laugh at the very shocked and wet Mark while Mrs. Shepherd just looks at them. Meredith then turns to Derek and grabs his bottle and pours it over his head.

"… and this is for talking about the stuff Mark told you about me. In. The. OR."

Meredith looks at Mrs. Shepherd with an apologetic smile and says.

"Sorry about this and it's nice to meet you again." She wheels off towards the food line to the sound of laughter from the people sitting close by two very wet doctors.

"What was that for?" Mrs. Shepherd asks her two embarrassed boys.

"Uhm… I… might have told Derek about Meredith's swimming and her being good enough to join the Para-Olympic swim team." Mark confesses and Derek continues

"I tried to talk about that during surgery today, nothing bad, just that I was impressed."

"And she apparently doesn't like being talked about. She got you good and appropriate with that water. The two of you know better then spreading words about your colleague. Why is she in a wheel-chair by the way?"

"I don't know" Derek says "I tried to find out once but it wasn't birth or accident, that's all I know."

"It's a tumor" Mark says before biting his tongue. "Sorry, you didn't hear that."

After seeing Mrs. Shepherd off to the airport Derek returns to the hospital to check on his patients and to do some paperwork. He changes into his scrubs and after a quick look in the mirror he decides to wear his scrub cap since his hair looks like an afro after the impromptu shower during lunch. After rounding on his patients he goes to grab a coffee before returning to his office and his paperwork. Standing there in line in his own thoughts Mark sneaks up behind him and snags his scrub cap.

"Just as I remember from high school. You look just the same but for some wrinkles in your face and the scar on your forehead." Mark laughs and throws the cap to Meredith before Derek can grab it back.

Derek makes a rush for Meredith but she pushes the scrap of cloth under her legs before he can get it. He makes a grab for it but she starts giggling and tries to take off. Mark arrives as her rescuer and pins Derek's arms behind his back while Meredith takes off with the scrub cap. She doesn't make it far before being stopped by a stern voice.

"What are you fools doing?" Bailey looks less then pleased.

"Mark took my scrub cap" Derek begins.

"I don't have it" Mark defends himself and holds both hands up to show.

"Meredith is sitting on it" Derek continues.

"Hand Dr Shepherd his scrub cap, now" Bailey says

"Who is the tattler now?" Meredith says as she wheels over and slams the cap into Derek's hand.

"Dr Grey, pit now!" Bailey slightly raises her voice and sends Meredith a stern look.

"And tell Dr Shepherd that you are sorry."

Meredith looks shocked at Dr Bailey but before anyone can say anything she turns her chair around and says

"Sorry Dr Shepherd"

Derek gives her a quick nod in acknowledgement before she leaves the hallway towards the pit.

"Dr Bailey, don't punish her to much. It was Dr Sloan that started it."

"Yeah I did. I just wanted to relive some of our high school days, the time before you learnt about hair products. Dr Grey just caught the cap as I tossed it to her."

"Dr Grey should know better, as should you" Bailey said as she stepped up to the counter and grabbed Derek's coffee. "It is good that you learnt about hair products Dr Shepherd" she said with a smirk before leaving towards the pit as well.

Mark pays for all three cups of coffee and also prepays for Meredith's next one. Derek and Mark makes it back to their offices talking about Meredith's earlier revenge in the cafeteria.

"Do you think we should worry about a new shower after this cap fight?" Derek asks.

"With her you never know. Keep your eyes open" Mark responds and shoves Derek towards the door before leaving with a chuckle.

Derek takes a deep breath and begins with his paperwork. After finishing with the actual papers he moves on towards the electronically sent ones. In his email he finds a response from the giant tumor doctor, Dr William Anderson.

_Dear Dr Shepherd,_

_It is correct that my patient has a giant spinal tumor and has had it the last ten years. The patient is refusing surgery. These plates were taken as a request from the patient's employer and will be done every six month. I will try and get permission to tell you more and if surgery ever will be done, I want to scrub in and observe._

_Yours sincerely_

_Dr William Anderson  
_

Derek reads the short email a couple of times while his thoughts fly through his mind. The employer requests the scans every six month. That means the patient is working probably in Seattle or in its vicinity. It must be a sitting job like clerk work, secretary, driver or maybe teacher. He knows most of the patients with neurological diseases or he could contact some of his fellow doctors. Suddenly it all becomes clear. He knows the patient that has a history of living in Boston, sits in a wheel-chair because of a tumor and doesn't like people talking about her. Her main focus is to become a neurosurgeon and she got that cleared even before starting internship. Dr Meredith Grey is the patient. The hospital would have a clause about scans every six month, it makes sense. Derek has trouble staying behind his desk and decides to take a walk over to radiology. Dr Pemberton should be there.

Derek enters Dr Pemberton's office after a quick knock on the doorframe.

"Hi Charles, do you have a moment to spare?"

"Hi" Charles looks up with a questionable facial expression "Yeah I can give you time."

"Great" Derek answers and closes the door behind him. Charles looks a little bit worried since they have not spoken since he spilled about Derek's hot redheaded wife.

"Listen mate, I'm sorry for what I did. I know that I'm a man whore but I have never been in this situation before. The ladies have always been…"

"Stop it Charles, I'm not mad at you. Addison took all the blame on herself. She had packed and left Seattle before I got home after prom and left signed divorce papers on the table. We were in marriage counseling and it was not really working. You were her second lover and we are both probably better off with her gone."

"Ok, but I'm still sorry for … you know"

"Yeah, but let's be friends. Addison even asked me to become your friend and rebuild my friendship with Mark and I'm doing just that."

They sit in their own thought for a while before Charles says

"So, why did you come here today?"

"Yeah, right, I have looked more at the scans of the giant tumor and even got in contact with the patient's doctor a William Anderson. Do you know him? I have read some articles written by him but you worked at Boston General before, right?

"Yeah, Bill Anderson is very good. He is not into experimenting but he is very good at what he does."

"This patient, whose name he doesn't reveal, is someone I think I know and I believe I have found a way to remove the tumor without cutting the spinal cord. Have you seen this tumor before?"

"Yeah, I think so" Charles is hammering something into his computer and after a minute he has the scans up "look here"

Derek walks around the desk and leans in to have a closer look on the scans shown on screen. After minute or so looking at different angles of the tumor he says

"This is not the same scans as those I saw."

"No these were taken… three years ago." After changing file they look at an even smaller tumor.

"These are six years ago"

"Do you have all of the patient's scans?"

"Yeah, it is an interesting case and I have used the scans on a lecture I've held last month."

"Is the patient aware of this?"

"Yes, I have her consent, her mother is a world renown general surgeon and very into teaching. I got consent more then five years ago."

"Can you put all the scans in a viewing program and show the growth?"

A couple of minutes later Charles has added the last scans and the two doctors look in amazement as the tumor grows in front of their eyes.

"Did the patient walk when the first picture was taken?"

"Yeah, but a year later she had to use a wheel-chair permanently. She was a very rebellious pink haired teenager and her mother had a difficult time to monitor her. She finished high school and started pre med school. She was determined to become a neurosurgeon."

"Yeah, I know. She will be an amazing surgeon on day."

"You know her?"

"Yeah, haven't you seen her here? The pretty blonde in a chair and wearing light blue scrubs."

"Is Meredith here?"

"Thank you Charles, you just confirmed my suspicions."

"You didn't know it was her?" Charles looks shocked and a little scared.

"Yes, no but I didn't know for sure. All the information pointed at her. Now can you help me get her to submit to more test? I believe I can fix her."

"That would be a surgery spoken about over the whole world. Do you really believe you can do it?"

"Yeah, but only if her nerves are not too damaged."

The two doctors sit there in silence looking at the screen that repeatedly shows the growing tumor. Suddenly the door is thrown up and Mark storms into the office.

"Charles, I need you to do something about the waiting time for CT and MRI." He stops and looks at the two fellow doctors sitting there staring at the screen. "What are you looking at?" He takes a closer look. "That is the giant tumor, how did you get the other scans?"

"I have them in a file since a lecture I gave." Charles answers.

"So you know the patient?"

"Yeah, and Derek has figured it out."

"You did?" Mark looks at Derek.

"Yeah and I believe I can do the surgery without cutting the spinal cord. She should be able to walk if her nerves are not too damaged."

"That is great! When will you do it?"

"That is the first problem. She doesn't know I can do the surgery and second I don't even know if I can change her mind into doing it and third and final problem is that she will kill me if she founds out that I've looked at her scans without her permission." Derek confesses sadly.

"I'll see what I can do, this is great, and she might be able to walk, run and dance. Do you want me to talk to her?"

The three doctors sit down and have a brainstorm while the hospital slowly comes to rest for the night. They finally decide to move to Joe's and have something to eat.


	17. Chapter 17

**OK, so here we go… I will now step into deep water as I have no medical training what so ever… Everything about the tumor in this chapter and all of the following ones is only made up in my head, my imagination. Welcome to my fic land… where man whores make bets…  
~mcanna**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 17**

Meredith is sitting by the bar with her friends when the three doctors enter the bar. They chose a corner booth at the other side of the room. Derek sits down so he can have a clear view of the bar while Mark walks up behind Meredith and whispers something in her ear. He is rewarded with a slap on his arm and a giggle. He returns to the table with their drinks and Joe will be there shortly with their meal.

"Mer is going home in an hour or so if I want a ride. Could you guys drop me off at home, if she leaves before I'm ready to go?"

"Sure, but I'm not sitting here waiting while you get some…"

"Is that Meredith Grey you were talking to?" Charles asks with astonishment.

"Yeah, she is quite a looker isn't she?"

"Yeah, you could say that. Is she dating anyone?"

"No, she only does one night stands and not anyone that she regards as a friend. I have tried" Mark confesses "and I'm a friend. She is even my landlord at intern hotel."

"Intern hotel?" Charles asks

"Yeah, she lives in this large mansion that her mother owns and she rents room to her fellow interns and me."

"Derek, where do you live?" Charles asks.

"Uhm… what… oh… I live on Bainbridge Island on forty acres of land overlooking Seattle."

"He lives in a tin can."

"Trailer Mark, it is a very nice trailer."

"Yeah, yeah"

Their food arrives and they continue chatting about their work and Mark and Charles are soon challenging each other into a game of who is the biggest man whore. The one with the most points after seven days pays for an evening at Joe's. Five point to score a phone number, twenty-five for a kiss, fifty for making out and one hundred points for sex. The game is on. Derek sits there listening to their talking not really paying any attention. He is contemplating Meredith's scans. He especially keeps her feet in his focus as he wonders about her nerves. Are there still any signals passing the tumor? Suddenly he sees her left foot twisting a little. It is just a small movement and she doesn't seem to notice. Is that because it is normal for her or is it because she can't feel it? He really wants to do some more tests. Her foot twists again and her reaction is the same. None. He turns to his friends to ask them if they can see it as well but realizes that the two of them are up trying to score points.

* * *

Meredith is feeling Derek staring at her but she tries to ignore him. He has been doing that for many months now. Suddenly she can feel him behind her.

"Hi Mer"

"Hi tattling podiatrist"

"Sorry about the pit"

"Yeah"

"I really am sorry and that I spoke about your personal doings in the OR. I won't do it again."

She turns her head and looks at him. She can see that he is really sorry. It is not just words.

"I forgive you, just don't do it again. I hate being the main gossip of the hospital."

"Fríends?"

"Yeah, friends"

"Can a friend buy a friend a drink?"

Meredith looks into Derek's vibrant blue eyes before she nods and giggles.

"Can we have a refill Joe, please?"

"The same Meredith?" Joe asks.

"No, let's switch to beer in a bottle Joe."

Joe places the order on the bar. They look at each other before reaching for their drinks. They sit side by side without speaking just feeling the other close by. It is the first time Meredith felt such closeness to a man. She felt like she would be content just sitting there. She didn't feel the need to speak. Derek smelled the light flowery scent from her hair. It was the most beautiful scent he ever felt. Her present was just right. He leaned in closer and took a deep breath.

"What are you doing?" she giggled.

"Breathing you in. Your hair smells nice. What is it for kind of flower?"

"Lavender"

"Oh, that's what it is. It smells really good."

"Thank you" she leant closer to him and took a deep breath "you smell good too, like the outdoor."

"I live on Bainbridge in the woods."

"You do? Why?"

"It is one of the most beautiful places in this area. The view over Seattle is magnificent and I have my own lake to go fishing in."

"You fish?"

"Yeah, fly-fishing, it is really a good way to relax from long surgeries."

"You lived in New York before right?

"Yeah"

"Did you fly-fish there as well?"

"I got some weekends away mostly with Mark but it never was as it is now. It is the best with living on Bainbridge."

"I've never been fishing."

"You could come sometime, it is stuff like that friends do?"

"But how will I do that? Can I drive up to the lake?"

"Yeah, it is possible."

"Sure let's do that sometime" she smiles at him and he gets lost in that smile.

"May I ask a personal question?" Derek asks after a while when the two of them had been sitting in silent.

"You can always ask, but I might not answer" Meredith says with a questionable expression.

"Please don't be mad or pour things over me."

She just looks at him and he continues

"Why are you in a wheel-chair?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"I saw your foot twisting before and I was wondering about your nerves."

"Why were looking at my feet?"

"Workaholic?"

She looks at him for a while before saying anything

"I don't want a new doctor. I am content with the one I have but I can tell you that I have an inoperable tumor on my spinal cord."

"Who says it is inoperable?"

"All of the doctors my mother lined up when I was diagnosed. Some of the hot shot ones wanted to experiment but my mother said no, thank God and later I said no. I don't want to be someone's guinea pig and way to fame. What an article it would be for the surgeon making Dr Ellis Grey's daughter walk again. But most of the more sensible ones are realistic and tell me the same. They can always try but they will probably have to cut the cord and what different will that do for me? I will need a catheter, I won't orgasm and I will never walk again. As it is now I can't walk but I can manage everything else. I prefer my life this way. Sorry I ramble when I get upset."

"No worry, I could follow, I have four sisters you know and that teaches a boy to understand a ramble" he says with a smile.

She gets lost in his dreamy smile. He is not McBastard anymore. He should be renamed McDreamy.

"If you could get your ability back to walk, run or dance, would you want it?"

"Have you been talking to Mark about me?"

"Why?"

"That is very close to something I've said to him once. I have to go. Can you help me up the stairs?"

Derek realizes that the conversation is over for this time. He got too personal. He tells Joe to put her tab on him and sweeps her into his arms and carries her up the stairs. Her hair is flying in the wind and he just wants to bury his face in it. Meredith takes deep breath of the scent coming from Derek. She can tell there is some shower gel, some from an after shave and then some that is uniquely Derek. He places her carefully in her chair and follows her to her car. When she opens the door and lift herself over to the seat he folds her chair and places it in the back.

"Thank you Derek" she says with a soft smile and lets her seat move into the car. He leans in and gives her a quick peck on her cheek before closing the door. She drives home with butterflies in her stomach. Why does she have that? The quick peck on her cheek burns and her hand covers her cheek when she falls asleep.

* * *

Mark and Charles leave Joe's together when the bar closes. Neither scored hundred points for sex but Mark has three phone numbers, two kisses and a make out session with one girl and that totals an amazing one hundred and fifteen. Charles has got nine phone numbers and three kisses and has a glorious total of one hundred and twenty points.

"Be prepared to pay mate" he says as he drops Mark at home.

"In your dreams, man whore. I'll be the number one before this deal is done." Mark replies.


	18. Chapter 18

**This chapter is short and brings people together and apart. A tissue might be needed...**

**Chapter 18**

The next morning Meredith is starting a late shift. She brings her coffee to her laptop and finishes with some bills and reads her mail. Her doctor in Boston has sent her one and wants her to call him as soon as possible. That doesn't sound good. She grabs her phone and makes the call.

"Dr Anderson's medical practice, this is Julia speaking."

"Hi Julia, this is Meredith Grey"

"Oh, hi Meredith. How are you this morning? How is your internship going?"

"I'm fine Julia even if the rain is pouring down. The hospital owns me but I've learnt a lot and am learning more every single day. Today I start late and will work the night shift... Bill has sent me an email and wanted me to call asap. Is he in?"

"I'm so sorry Meredith but he was called in on an emergency just a couple of minutes ago and it sounded like it could take a while."

"Ok, can you ask him to call me on my cell phone?"

"I'll see what I can do. You have a good day and please call me sometimes just for a chat. I want to know about all the hot men in your life."

"Sure, thank you Julia. Bye" Meredith hangs up with a small smile on her lips. Julia is almost like a sister to her and they met each other at a camp they both attended. Dr Bill Anderson had sent the two of them to a summer camp to learn more about using wheels. Julia had a spinal accident that left her paralyzed from her waist and down.

Meredith starts doing laundry and suddenly the phone goes off and she can hear by the selected signal that it is from her mothers care facility.

"Hello, this is Meredith speaking."

"Meredith, this is Nurse Anne from Roseridge Homes. Your mother has taken a turn for the worse and we don't know if she will make it."

"Ok, I'll be there as soon as possible. Please tell her that I am coming and that I love her."

Meredith hurries through the kitchen and almost collides with Mark coming through the kitchen door.

"Watch it Mer, you almost rolled over me!" He jumped out of her way when she just continued forward.

"Meredith, stop, where are you going? What is it Mer" he sees her tears streaming down her cheeks. "Are you hurt?"

When Meredith grabs her purse and her car keys he makes a quick decision and rips the keys from her hand.

"You are not driving. I'll drive."

"You have work and I must go there now. It might be too late."

"Meredith wait" Mark grabs both of their jackets and hurries behind her. When they reach the driveway he simply lifts her out of her chair and deposits her in the passenger seat of his car. He folds her chair and throws it into the trunk.

"Where to" he asks and starts the car driving down the street.

"It is my mum... I have to get there" she cries."

"Where are we going Meredith? Is she at the airport?"

"No… she is… at… Roseridge Homes on Rosewedge Road."

"Can you direct me?"

"Take a left here…" Meredith doesn't say anything more but gives him directions. They soon arrive at a beautiful large mansion with an official kind of look.

"Meredith, what is Dr Grey doing here?" Mark asks her carefully not letting her out yet.

"She has advanced Alzheimer and they called me and said that she is very bad. Oh Mark, she might be dead." Meredith starts sobbing and Mark wraps his arms around her.

"Oh Meredith, have you been taking care of her all by yourself? Why haven't you told me? I could have been here for you."

"She made me sign a contract that won't allow me to tell anyone."

"Why?"

"She doesn't want to be remembered as the doctor who was famous but died of Alzheimer. She wants to be remembered by her achievement in the OR."

"Let's get you inside" Mark steps out of the car and brings her chair up to the passenger door. When he lifts her out he cuddles her close and kisses her head.

"Do you want me to follow you to her or should I wait in the hallway?"

"Please wait in the hallway. I'll ask a nurse to show you the way if I need you."

"Ok, but you have to promise that you ask for me if you need me for anything."

"Ok" she says before rolling up the ramp.

* * *

Meredith rolls straight to her mother's room. In there she is met by an astonishing sight. Her mother is almost sitting in her bed.

"There you are Meredith. I wanted to talk to you before it is too late."

"Mum, are you really here today? I love you mum."

"I love you too but I need you to ask Dr Webber to come as soon as possible."

"Ok mum" Meredith calls Dr Webber and he promises to arrive as soon as possible. He doesn't even ask questions. Meredith is looking at her lucid mother with tears in her eyes.

"Mum, he is coming."

"Fine, now let us talk. I know that this is my last chance and I need you to listen. First, never forget that I love you. Second, if there is a doctor that knows what he is doing you are going to let him remove your tumor. Third, I want only Richard here when I die."

When Meredith hears this she starts crying again.

"I don't want you to die, mum. Please don't say this."

"No Meredith, I love you too much and I want you to remember me as a lucid person as your mother that loves you more than anything. I don't want you to hear my Alzheimer speaking. I know that I have said thing to you that made you leave this room crying and I don't want that to be my last words to you. You are an amazing person and you will be an even better doctor then I ever was. You are extraordinary. You are my pride and the truly good I did in my life. Please have your tumor removed, be the best neurosurgeon there is and find someone that loves you the way you deserve. On your wedding day I want you to visit my grave and give me a gardenia from your bouquet and I want you to walk down the aisle to your husband. Can you do this for me?"

Meredith couldn't speak but managed to nod. She had grabbed hold of Ellis hand and refused to let go. Ellis other hand reached over and stroked her hair. Don't cry Meredith, this is the way of life. I have had an amazing life. Go have one for you."

"I'm not leaving you mum."

"Yes, you are my sweet hearth, when Richard comes I need you to leave."

"But…"

"No buts just let us enjoy these last moments and remember what you promised."

There is a soft knock on the door.

* * *

Richard hurries towards the address he got from Meredith. When he enters the front door Mark Sloan is the first person he sees.

"What's going on?"

"Dr Grey is here and it is some kind of emergency Sir."

"What is Meredith doing here? Is she alright?"

"It is not Meredith Sir, it is her mother Dr Ellis Grey. She is here because of advanced Alzheimer and that is the only thing I know. Meredith didn't say anything else while I drove her here. What are you doing here?"

"Meredith called and it sounded like she was crying."

Dr Webber walks up to the reception and asks for Dr Grey.

"I'm sorry sir but what is your name"

"Dr Richard Webber"

"Dr Grey has spoken a lot about you sir. Just a moment sir" the nurse leaves the reception and walks down the hall to a room a couple of doors down. After a soft knock she opens the door.

"Dr Grey" she says softly from the door.

"Yes" both women in the room answers. It is the one and only time they will ever be mixed up. Ellis even laughs and Meredith smiles through her tears. The nurse realizes the mix up and smiles as well.

"There is a Dr Richard Webber asking for you."

"Show him in please" Ellis says.

"NO" Meredith cries "NO mum, please don't."

"Meredith, it is time. I'm beginning to get tired and I really need to speak with Richard before it is too late. I love you Meredith and if you love me you leave now."

* * *

Both Richard and Mark have run to the door when they heard Meredith's cry of agony. Ellis looks at Richard and motions for him to enter.

"Richard, how lovely to see you again. Can you please help Meredith out of here and then come back? I really need to talk to you before it is too late." Ellis turns to Meredith who is sobbing hard and has put the breaks in the chair.

"Meredith, my lovely daughter, you have to promise me that you are doing what I asked from you and that you leave now before I slip back into my illness. I want you to know that my last words to you are that I love you Meredith. You are an extra ordinary person and I am proud of you. I love you."

Richard has motioned for Mark to enter the room as well. Mark moves behind Meredith and when she lifts her head and says her last word to her mum he releases the breaks and pulls her out of the room.

"I love you mum"

**I have no knowledge of Alzheimers disease, everything about Ellis is in my imagination. :)**

**~mcanna  
**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Meredith is sitting in the front of the room. There are pictures of Ellis all around the room and even a small screen that is showing a clip from a surgery where the Grey method is used. Ellis has not wanted a regular funeral but for this memorial. Her ashes were to be divided into two halves, one to be buried and one to be flushed down into the sink of her favorite scrub room. Meredith and Richard had preformed this two days after her death. Today it was a week since she died and the whole auditorium at SGH was filled with friends and colleagues from all around the world. Richard was up and speaking about her mother. Meredith didn't listen very much. She reminisced in her mother's last word.

Mark had pulled her into his lap in the waiting area and cradled her for the following hour. Richard came out after that hour and told them that she slipped back into herself and was now sleeping. He sent Meredith and Mark back to the house were Meredith were to find a sealed envelope in the safe and open it. The envelope contained detailed information about the funeral arrangements and what to do and how to do it. The reading of the will was done day before today's services. Meredith was the sole beneficiary but for a donation to SGH and some small monetary gifts to a few people working with Dr Ellis Grey when the Grey Method was invented. At the end of the reading Meredith had got another sealed envelope with almost the exact words that her mother had told her the last day. Richard was put in charge of fulfilling all of Ellis wishes.

Meredith tuned back to today's happening and a representative from Harper-Avery Award was talking about the Grey Method. Her mind moves back to later that last day. Her roommates called her asking for why she didn't show up for work. Mark answered all her phone calls and told them a very short version. At five thirty Richard called again and said it was over. She had wanted to go and say a final goodbye but Ellis will didn't allow it. She was already being transported to a funeral home and would be cremated upon arrival. Mark sat with her wrapped in his arms whispering soothing words into her hair. Just before seven a clock, Meredith had broken free and asked him to bring her to Joe's. Her intern friends arrived shortly after summoned by Mark and they had kept the tequila shots coming and when she had enough they brought her home and stayed by her side until the following day.

Meredith tuned back to the applause. She looked around and saw people starting to leave. Only a few of her closets friends waited behind. The largest surprise was two very well known faces just inside the door. Dr Bill Anderson and Julia were waiting there. She took one last look up on the screen behind the podium and that is when she saw it.

_I don't want you to mourn me but remember me as _

_Dr Ellis Grey_

_and I want you to be there for the next generation of Greys, the extra ordinary_

_Dr Meredith Grey_

After a lunch with some of the guest that flown to Seattle for this memorial Meredith found herself sitting with Dr Bill Anderson and Julia along with her friends. Richard was entertaining the prominent doctors from around the globe.

"Meredith, I would like to speak with you before I leave tonight" Bill said.

Meredith looked at him first and then at Julia. Julia looked like she knew something and her eyes looked happy. Meredith had more trouble reading her doctor. He had his doctor face on.

Derek had had a full week while Meredith was home. He, together with Mark, Charles and Richard had come up with a plan on how to pursue Meredith into having a second evaluation done by him. Derek had called Dr Anderson and since he was to attend the memorial he could meet Meredith in person and talk to her. Derek had sent Dr Anderson copies of some articles of his spinal surgeries.

Meredith looked around the table that only had her friends.

"You can speak now Doc Bill if you aren't going to embarrass me."

He too took a look around the table before answering

"OK Meredith… I have found a doctor that is skilled enough to remove your tumor and he is willing to do it if you pass his tests."

Meredith just sat there looking at him.

"Who?" she asked the silent table.

"I won't tell you unless you promise to undergo the tests. You have to pass them before you have to decide about the surgery."

"What makes you believe in this surgeon?"

"His willingness to take on difficult surgeries and his outstanding success rate in these cases."

"Why wasn't he asked all these years ago?"

"He was still a resident when you were diagnosed. It is in his last couple of years his reputation has skyrocketed. He is the best in the US and probably in the world."

Meredith had a gut feeling she knew this doctor. Her friends looked happy and shocked to hear about this except Mark. He looked like he knew something and that only confirmed her suspicion.  
"I need to think about this. When do you need an answer from me?"

"Your tumor is slowly growing and very soon the nerves will be too damaged. You will loose what control you have of you lower body and become a paraplegic."

"But you said that I could live with this for at least forty to fifty years!"

"Never said you could wait that long for a surgery. In less than fifty years the tumor will kill you. You will most certainly have lost control of most of your body long before that."

"You don't give me many options, do you?"

"No Meredith. I don't dictate your options, your body or more exactly your tumor does."

Meredith turned to Julia

"Julia do want to go for a ride?"

"Yeah, let's get out of here" she says and wheels off towards the exit with Meredith close behind. The people left in the room look after them and then at each other.

Meredith and Julia drive down to the dock and sit there talking looking over the bay and the ferryboats moving across.

"You will do it, right?" Julia asks.

"Mhm" Meredith answers.

"Think about what you will gain walking, running, dancing and jumping. I would give the world to be able to jump of a trampoline again or go skating. You have to do it Mer."

"I know I have to but that doesn't make it any less scary. What if Derek cuts the cord and leaves me a paraplegic. What have I gained then? NOTHING… NOTHING but PAIN."

"What makes you think Dr Shepherd will cut the cord?"

"Ha, I was right. It is Derek that can do the surgery."

"How do you know it's him?"

"You just told me. I said Derek and you said Dr Shepherd."

"Damn, you were not to know that yet."

"Spill, the whole story and nothing but the truth so help you God."

"It seems like it began with you having the MRI done. The Head of Radiology was new  
that day and Dr Webber walked him through the hospital. Your scans were evaluated by the technician as they came in. Your tumor is eye catching and Dr Pemberton recognized it. He later met up with Dr Shepherd and got introduced. They small talked and Dr Pemberton mentioned the tumor he saw earlier that day. Nothing happened that day but a couple of days later Doc Bill received an email from Dr Shepherd were he asked for permission to observe the surgery. Doc replied that he wouldn't do the surgery but if Dr Shepherd did he wanted to attend. Doc researched Dr Shepherd thoroughly and they have talked about it on the phone and yesterday when we arrived here."

"How did Derek find out that it was me?"

"He guessed after getting a couple of facts as far as I know."

Meredith sat in silence for a while. Everything that happened this last week was too much for her. Her mother's death, the prospect of regaining her movement in her lower body and those promises her mother made her give. She was to have her tumor removed if opportunity came.

"Let's go back to the hospital" Meredith says as she starts the engine and turns around on the parking lot.

At the hospital she leaves Julia to find Doc Bill while she changes into scrubs and starts to search for Derek. She finds him in the OR doing a very appropriate tumor removal from a spinal cord. This is a guy with tumor causing him to walk around with a constant hard on. But as a surgery it is equivalent with her surgery but for the risk of having the cord cut. She sits in the gallery contemplating her options. When the surgery is done, she slowly wheels down the hallway in search for Doc Bill. She finds him chatting up Dr Pemberton.

"Doc Bill, may I have a word please" she asks after knocking on the doorframe.

"Oh, there you are Meredith" Dr Anderson says with a smile.

"May I just say how nice it is to meet you again." Dr Pemberton smiles and continues "You look stunning in your new hair color. Pink was not as beautiful as this is on you. Please accept my condolences, your mother was exceptional, it will be a pleasure working with Dr Grey junior."

"Thank you Dr Pemberton, may I steal Dr Anderson for a while?"

"Please do, we are just spending time gossiping about our acquaintances."

"Meredith let's find a room where we can talk."

"Follow me Doc" Meredith said and led the way towards a conference room on the surgical floor."

"So Meredith, have made any decisions I should know about?"

"Yeah, I'll do the tests, but if Derek can't do it or if he gets into trouble during surgery he is not to cut the cord. Understand? I want you in the OR the whole time. You will never leave me alone in there."

"Ok Meredith, do you want to talk to him now?"

"Yes, let's get this done as soon as possible."

Bill leaves the room to have the nurses page Dr Shepherd to the conference room asap. 

Meanwhile in the conference room Mark shows up.

"How are you doing?"

"Fine"

"Really fine or Meredith fine?"

"Meredith fine"

"Why?"

"I'm going to have your friend cut my spine open and if I'm lucky I will have an awful  
scar along my back for the rest of my life."

"Are you concerned about the scar or the surgery? You know that I'll be more than happy to close you up and the scaring will be invisible."

"The surgery but please be there and stop Derek if he decides to cut my cord."

"Sure Mer, I'll be there for you and to prevent him from practicing his needlepoint. Are you sure about this?"

"Yeah, I made a promise to mum and I really can't take that back." 

Dr Anderson and Derek stepped into the conference room together. Derek had butterflies in his stomach and his palms were sweaty.

"Is this a good time?" Doc Bill asked.

"Yeah, come in" Meredith motioned them in "have you met Dr Mark Sloan?"

"Not formally"

"Doc Bill, this is Dr Mark Sloan Head of Plastics, Mark this is Dr William Anderson, neurosurgeon at Boston General."

The two doctors shook hands and they all sat down. Derek had trouble looking Meredith in her eyes. He somehow felt like he betrayed her.

"So, Dr Shepherd you believe you can remove my tumor without making me a paraplegic?"

"Yes I do Dr Grey" Derek answers. He is not sure if he should call her Mer or Dr Grey but chose the formal way as she addressed him as Dr Shepherd.

"You don't have any problems with us being friends?"

"No… yes… a little but we are not that close. I should be able to focus."

"Why do you want to do this surgery?"

"I want to see you walk" he answers without hesitation."

"So, it is not for fame or the trill of doing something no one else can do?"

"Dr Grey, many of my surgeries are of the kind where I am the only surgeon that can do them. I am already famous enough. Maybe the surgery will make an article, maybe not. I can though make sure it will not make any tabloids if that is what concerns you."

"By the way, how does your ego fit through the doors here at SGH?"

"What is wrong with having confidence?"

"What will you do if you have opened my spine and you can't get the tumor out?"

"I'll get nothing or parts of the tumor out."

"Will you cut my cord?"

"Only if that is the only option to save your life"

"What if I give you the option to do this surgery but for cutting the cord. If cutting my cord is the only option for me to survive then I don't want to live. Are you still up for cutting?"

"Why do you have that condition?"

"I am already a paraplegic but now I have the chance to regain control over my lower body. That makes it possible to manage. If I didn't have that option but to recover from a painful surgery and still be paraplegic and have no more hope. That would kill me."

"Any other requests?"

"No other than that I want Doc Bill there along with Dr Sloan. Dr Sloan has promised to close and spare me you needle point, his words not mine. I want the names on those you chose to have in there. When can we do the preliminary testing and when can the surgery be done?"

The four of them discussed the plans for a couple of minutes more before both Derek and Mark was paged 911 to the pit.


	20. Chapter 20

**Someone will be stubborn and someone will be mad, really mad...**

**Chapter 20**

The following morning Meredith is in a gown as Derek enters the exam room.

"Ok, let's get this show on the road."

"What will you do today?"

"We will test your reflexes in a lot of different ways. It is no use doing the surgery if you can't regain function in your legs. The physiotherapist here at the hospital will have his go with you along with Dr Harry Bright. If the surgery is going to be I want him assisting me. He is very good at spinal surgeries and he is a final year resident. I also plan to use a neurosurgeon Dr Sam Carmichael from New York. I have worked with him before and we cooperate well, third cutting surgeon is your Dr Anderson. The second assisting surgeon will be Dr Bailey and third assisting will be Dr Sydney Heron. Interns will be…"

"Stop right there. There will be no interns on this."

"But I thought you would like your friends in there with you."

"Use some other if you need more surgeons, second or third years, no interns"

"We will discuss this further after evaluating the tests" Derek continues with the planed protocol. Dr Bright arrives to do some blood work while a technician arrives with a smaller wagon of different equipment. Meredith leans back and closes her eyes. She just wants this over with.

* * *

Mark arrives to pick her up after an almost full day of testing. She feels beaten up and humiliated since mainly the nurses been standing along the hallway when she was transferred between different examinations. They all seemed to have some things to say that she heard fragments off.

"How was today? Was Derek hard on you?"

"No, not him"

"Then who?"

"The nurses, they had a field day and have enough to gossip about for the next year."

"Do you want me to stop it?"

"If you get into it everything will just escalate, so thank you for offering but no thank you."

"Want some pizza for dinner?"

"Yes please"

"Did Derek say anything, about when he wants to do the surgery?"

"No, but I will get the test results tomorrow morning and than he probably knows when to cut."

* * *

Everyone congregates at her house that evening.

"Dr Shepherd said yesterday that I could be in on your surgery" Cristina says.

"No" Meredith responds.

"No what?" Cristina asks.

"No, you can't be in on it. No interns will be."

"But it will be a kick ass surgery Mer" Cristina whines.

"Doesn't matter, I don't want you there or I won't do it."

"So you mean that if we are in you will not have the tumor removed?"

"Yes"

"But…"

"No but, if this is being done I decide who will be in the OR and none of my friends will be there except Mark but that is only because he is the best at needle point and he can stop Derek from cutting my cord."

"Yay, thanks Grey, I feel really special" Mark says as his phone goes off. A quick look at the display and he leaves the room to answer it."

* * *

"Mark" he says when reaching the hallway.

"Hi Mark, can you talk?" Derek replies.

"Yeah, just give me a second to put on a jacket and I'll be outside… so what's up?"

"I'm doing the surgery but I need someone to juggle the plan of attack. It will be supervised like a major play. It will take between twelve and twenty four hours. This will be one of the largest surgeries of the year. I'll run it past Webber later. Can you come over to my office and vent?"

"Sure I'll be there in a little while." Mark walks back in and tells the other he'll been called back to the hospital.

"Mer, I'll be there tomorrow with you no matter what. Have me paged if I'm not there."

"Ok, see you Mark" she waves him off.

* * *

After a night with no sleep Meredith arrives to her appointment with Derek. They are to meet in the same conference room as last time. When she arrives at eight a clock the room looks full. It is then she realizes that the surgery can be done. She might walk again. Waiting outside she begins to freak out. Derek sees her outside the window and hurries to open the door and walk out to her.

"Meredith, are you OK?"

"No, I'm freaking out."

Derek guides her across the hall into an empty room.

"Listen, as you understand, I believe I can do this. Today is for showing you how it will be done. I will show you as much as I know today and what I can see and what I have to guess. There are things that will arise during surgery that we will have to tend to as they appear but you know that. The important part is that I see a way to do this and if the nerves get their function all back you will walk before Christmas."

"Will I be able to finish my internship?"

"Yes, but you will need to do some heavy rehab and you will be hospitalized for about fourteen days following the surgery."

"But I can return to work after that if I use my chairs and do rehab?"

"Yes but I won't release you for full time for the first couple of weeks. It doesn't matter how much you yell at me."

"OK"

"Ok, let's do this. Remember that you don't have to do anything until you heard everything and you are under anesthesia."

* * *

Inside the conference room the talking die down when Meredith and Derek enter the room together. Derek takes lead at the head of the table. Meredith sits beside him with Doc Bill on her left. She can't see Mark anywhere. Derek begins the meeting with introducing Dr Carmichael to Meredith. Then Meredith asks for the floor.

"I know that this is a one time surgery for all of you but I have some things to ask of everyone in this room. I hate being the centre of gossip and I don't want any of this spread outside this group. It is OK if you are to write an article for a medical paper but every other thing will be a big no. Yesterday my lawyer made up a legal contract that I want each of you to sign before we move on with this. If you leave now and spread anything you already know, remember you will be answering to a judge about patient doctor confidentiality. I know that this is extreme but if you were in my position you would probably do the same."

* * *

At this exact moment there is a short knock on the door and Dr Webber enters along with her lawyer Ms. Winter and Mark. The lawyer introduces herself and began handing out the single paper to sign. Everyone signed a paper and the lawyer collected them until she reached Dr Webber who hadn't sign it.

"Dr Webber" she said, "I'll need your paper."

"What is this Meredith, we don't need this kind of lawyer business?"

"It is needed sir, if you want me to do this here. I understand that you want to use it for PR but I am not doing that. Either you sign or we all leave."

"Meredith, in the hallway, now!" Dr Webber walked briskly outside.

"Meredith do you want me to join you?" both Ms. Winter and Derek asked her.

"No thank you, I can handle this."

"Meredith, if he is against signing Boston General will be delighted to sign" Doc Bill says.

"Dr Grey, the same is for Mount Sinai, New York" Dr Carmichael added.

"Thank you" she smiled at the two surgeons before exiting the conference room.

* * *

"Meredith, let's do this in my office" Richard barked following her towards his door.

"Richard…"

"No, you listen to me young lady. This is my hospital and you can't dictate how this case will be treated."

"You listen to me Richard and listen carefully. I. WILL. NOT. DO. THIS. SURGERY. HERE. OR. EVER. IF. IT. ISN'T. .WRAPS. MY. WRAPS." Meredith turns her chair around and moves towards the door.

"Meredith, this is a teaching hospital and you are one of its students!" he yells after her.

She turns on the spot. Daggers shooting from her eyes.

"I am a patient in this case, not a doctor and I will not be talked about more than necessary. If you don't like that, I can probably finish my internship on the east coast. The meeting will continue if you sign the paper otherwise I'll be home mourning my mother and doing some phone calls to the east coast. Have a nice day Dr Webber."

Meredith doesn't even return to the conference room. She gets in her car and is gone from the hospital in less than five minutes.

* * *

Derek and the team are using the time to start planning for the surgery. Nurse Debbie has to make a special schedule for the scrub nurses as they want to use the same ones as much as possible. They have to prepare for the long surgery and hope to get out early. Derek is paging Dr Pemberton to make sure he can have radiology on stand by in case they need them. The anesthetics need to have 24 hour back up. A lot of the hospitals recourses will be taken into use and therefore other surgeries will have to be moved. Derek wants this done as soon as possible and they can begin the day after tomorrow if Webber agrees.

"Where are Dr Grey and Dr Webber?" Derek asks the others as he realizes that they have been gone for close to an hour. Nurse Taylor leaves to find out and returns after a few minutes with a strange look on his face.

"Dr Shepherd" he begins and continues when he gets Derek's attention "I went to Patricia and she told me that Dr Grey and Dr Webber had a big screaming contest and Dr Grey left. She yelled that if Dr Webber didn't sign she would be at home mourning her mother and make phone calls to the east coast."

"What, making phone calls to the east coast, what for?"

"Well, Dr Webber yelled something about this being a teaching hospital and Dr Grey responded with something about finishing her internship on the east coast."

"Excuse me but I have to talk to Dr Webber about this."

"I'll join you" Doc Bill said.

"Me to" Dr Carmichael pitched in.

"I'll come as well" Ms Winter said, I'm her legal representative.

"What the hell, I'm her friend and I'll come too" Mark stood up.

* * *

The group of five left the conference room and walked together towards Dr Webber's office.

"Is he in?" Derek asked Patricia.

"Yeah, but he is in a foul mood so watch out" she warned them.

"So are we" Mark said under his breath.

Patricia buzzes them in but Derek has already opened the door.

"Richard, what the hell is going on?"

"Meredith is throwing a fit and has unreasonable requests"

"How so?"

"That legal stuff stops the hospital to gaining anything out of this surgery"

"Her insurance will pay, what else do you need?"

"I want the publicity of this surgery."

"Publicity where?" Ms. Winter asks.

"TV, news papers and what ever more the PR-department can think of."

"You will get articles written by me and a lot of the other participants" Derek replies.

"I want the local press as well. A surgery like this will make patients queue to be treated here. Seattle will become the number one teaching hospital in the US."

"Is it worth to lose Meredith over it?" Mark asked.

"She will come to her senses, she just need time" Dr Webber just waved that away.

"So, you are not signing" Ms Winter asks once again.

"No, I'm not"

"I'll be in contact with you later Dr Webber, please excuse me gentlemen but I have to speak with Dr Grey" Ms. Winter leaves the men behind and picks up her cell phone.

* * *

Meredith's is on the phone with chief of surgery at Boston General when her cell signals she has incoming phone call. She asks the chief to hold on while she checks who is calling. After a minute she returns.

"It seems like I can begin Monday next week if that is convenient for you. My other wheel-chair will be shipped to you as soon as possible. Looking forward seeing you again on Monday" she finishes the phone call and calls her lawyer back.

"Hi Gloria, it's me Meredith"

"Oh, hi Meredith, how are you doing?"

"Just fine, can you do me a favor and hand in a resignation from SGH for me and get my personal stuff out of there preferably today. If you can get my electrical chair by DHL to Boston General before Monday it will be perfect."

"What have you done?"

"I will transfer to Boston General and I start on Monday. There is nothing keeping me here in Seattle any longer. Mother is dead and it seems like I will not have the surgery done so I better get on with my life. I don't want to work under Dr Webber when he just sees me as someone he can gain points in the public eye to show off."

"Meredith, you have gained a lot of friends here. There are a lot of people at the hospital that cares about you and you can have the surgery done on the east coast."

"I'll have Doc Bill and Julia in Boston, I don't need anything else, as for surgery I will have to rethink about it."

"Is that enough?"

"It has to be" Meredith is looking around her house and decides to get a moving company  
to pack her stuff.

"I'll do as you asked Meredith. I'll be in touch and don't leave without saying good bye."

"Why don't you come to Joe's tonight and we have a going away party there?"

"OK, see you later."

"Thank you Gloria"


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

Gloria returns to Dr Webber's office and the other doctors are still there arguing with Richard. She knocks on the door and all of them looks up.

"Dr Webber may I speak with you?"

"What is it about?"

"Dr Grey, sir"

"Has she changed her mind?"

"No sir, she wants me to hand in her resignation."

"She does what?" Derek stutters.

"Richard, are you OK with this?"

"She won't do it. She has all her life here."

"Excuse me sir, she wants me to pick up her personal belongings and her wheel-chair will be picked up by DHL later today."

"Richard" both Derek and Mark turns to him.

"Dr Shepherd" Doc Bill says.

"Yeah, what?"

"Are you still prepared to do this surgery if I can get you an OR in Boston or any other hospital?"

"What, yeah sure, I can probably get an OR at Mount Sinai, right Sam?" Derek turns to Dr Carmichael.

"Would you consider Boston General?" Doc Bill asked.

"I want her to be able to walk again and I will do this surgery wherever she feels comfortable."

Both Drs Anderson and Carmichael reach for their phone and walks out of the room. Derek looks at Dr Webber and then at Mark and last at Ms. Winter before speaking.

"Dr Webber, I believe I have an unsuspected family emergency and I'll be taking a leave of absent due to personal matters. I will hand my patients over to my fellows.

Mark looked at Derek before he said

"Dr Webber, as you are well aware of, I have grown up as a son in Dr Shepherd's family and I'll also be on a personal leave. I'll have some patients as well to move to my fellows."

"Dr Webber, your assistant just received Dr Grey's resignation I will just sign it and be out of your way. Good day" Ms. Winter said as she stood up and closed her laptop.

The three of them meet up with the other doctors in the hallway.

* * *

Patricia knocked on the door and walked in with a stern look on her face.

"Was this what you promised Dr Ellis Grey, is this how you are to look after Meredith?" she slammed a signed resignation down on his desk and marched out and before slamming the door behind her she stopped and said

"By the way, I'll be taken the rest of the day. I'm too mad to work with you today" and with that she slammed the door shut.

* * *

An hour later Dr Webber had to leave his office due to surgery. On his way out he noticed that the surgical floor was unusually quiet. He looked after Nurse Debbie but there was no nurse at the nurses' station. When Dr Torres passed him he asked where everyone was.

"Those who aren't sick are in the OR with emergencies."

"Oh, OK then I'll talk to them in the OR."

"You sir. are not on the board. The ORs are only opened for emergencies as since the last thirty minutes."

"What, why haven't I been told?"

"I don't know" she leaves in a hurry as her pager goes off.

When Dr Webber stops to read the OR board he can see that there is only three emergency surgeries on it. He doesn't have any surgery. He walks in to the closest scrub room grabs a mask and steps into Dr Bailey's OR.

"Dr Bailey"

"Yes sir" she answers without stopping her work.

"You know everything that happens in this hospital. Where are everyone and where is my surgery?"

"I believe it is a bug going through the staff sir and your surgery is cancelled sir."

"Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"That I don't know sir. She looks over to the scrub room when a person in a uniform enters with question in his eyes.

"Sir could you handle that" she nods towards the scrub room.

Dr Webber turns and sees a man reaching for the door opener. Before he can contaminate the OR Richard is out the door pushing the man back outside into the hallway.

"What do you think you are doing? That is a sterile area. Can't you see the doors over there saying authorized personal only?"

"Sorry sir, but I am asked to pick up an electrical wheel-chair that is in room 505B" the man looks at the doors in front of him and sees the specific door.

"Excuse me sir, but the room is there." He walks around a stunned doctor and finds the wheel-chair. After some trouble starting it he can move it out and puts a box with the name Dr Grey on in the seat before moving the chair along the hall.

"Wait, stop, where are you taking this chair?"

"To my truck sir?"

"Where is it going?"

"I don't know sir, I am only to bring it down to our dock and someone else will transport it."

* * *

Richard looks as the man leaves with the chair, he then looks around and finally he realizes what he has done. He walks briskly back to his office and finds Meredith's resignation. He looks at it and picks up his phone calling Meredith. There is no answer at her home or on her cell phone. At the bottom of the page he finds a phone number to the lawyer.

"Winter and Kovalevsky" a pleasant voice answers.

"Ms. Winter, please"

"Sorry sir but she is in court. Can I take a message?"

He hangs up and lets his head rest in the palms of his hands. What has he done? An angry phone signal sounds through the office. He reaches for the phone.

"Are you out of your mind Richard?" the head of the board yells at him.

"No sir"

"Then can you explain to me why your head nurse and several department heads have called me?"

"Why have they called you?"

"You refused a patient that asked for extra privacy? A patient going through a very prestigious surgery? A surgery that was paid in full? A surgery that this hospital would benefit from."

"Sir, it is a tumor removal and the patient is one of our interns and she want to put a legal gag on us."

"Where is your surgical staff right now Richard?"

"I am told there is a bug going around."

"That bug is you Richard"

"The second thing is that the chief of surgery at Boston General expects an evaluation of Dr Meredith Grey emailed to him today. She is starting there this coming Monday. Don't tell me it is her tumor that is supposed to be removed."

"As I guess your caller already told you, it is"

"Fix it, now! Make her withdraw her resignation and sign the good damn legal gag. I want Seattle Grace to do this surgery. It will be enough publicity for us in all the articles that are bound to be written. Doctors from all over the US and probably abroad will send patients to us. We don't need the common man to know. The cases this surgery will pull are high profile anyhow."

Richard tries to reach Ms. Winter one more time.

* * *

Meredith is on the phone with a cleaning service in Boston when her roommates and Cristina enter the kitchen.

"Meredith" she can hear Cristina even before she is in the kitchen.

"In the kitchen" she replies and finishes her phone call.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Cristina starts yelling even before she enters the kitchen.

"I'm making sure my house is clean when I arrive the day after tomorrow."

"Your house is clean! Izzy is a neat freak!"

"Not this house, my house in Boston. My plane leaves tomorrow evening and I'll arrive before lunch due to a lay over in New York. Do you guys want to come to my going away party tonight at Joe's?"

"Meredith what have you done?" Izzy butts into the conversation.

"I'll start on Monday as an intern at Boston General. I won't even lose time and can count everything I've done here. I'll have three full days in Boston before work starts on Monday morning."

"You are supposed to begin rehab on Monday not a new job."

"I know, but the surgery will not be done."

"Yes it will be done, if you want it" she hears from the hallway as Mark and Derek steps in to the kitchen.

"What are all you guys doing here? Your shift isn't over yet."

"We are on personal leave" Mark says as he opens the refrigerator and pulls two bottles of beer out and he throws one to Derek.

"Why?"

"Because, we can't work when a member of our extended family is mistreated."

"Meredith, can we talk" Derek asks her quietly.

"Yeah… sure… in a moment" she looks distracted at the rest of the people in her kitchen.

"You guys, why are you home already explain that when I'm back?" she moves towards the hallway and stops "If Dr Webber calls, don't answer and if it is DHL confirm my address in Boston, it's written on the papers beside the phone, Lakewood Road" she leaves the kitchen with Derek in tow.

"Do we need private or is the living room OK?"

"It is about the surgery" Derek answers.

"There won't be any surgery, because Dr Webber won't sign and my plane to Boston leaves tomorrow evening."

"Why are you leaving?"

"Because I resigned today and I'll continue my internship at Boston General"

"Why did you resign?"

"Indifferences with my boss"

"What did he say to you when the two of you left this morning?"

"He reminded me that SGH is a teaching hospital and I'm an intern. He wants to use this surgery as a PR-event to promote the hospital. I don't want that. I am a patient and I don't want to be ogled by my fellow colleagues. I want some kind of personal life. Everywhere I've been, since I got into this damn wheel-chair, has tried to use my personal life as a way to promote their business" she has to wipe away angry tears and takes a deep breath before continuing "Dartmouth wanted me in every damn folder going out to new students… they wanted me as a freak exhibition at college fairs… my high school tried to have me on their brochure… the company that sold my electrical wheels… the only place that never tried was Boston General but my mother made them sign a legal gag before hand… I'm no… fre…freak show… I can't walk thanks to the damn tumor… it is my daily misery not a thing others… should profit on" she is crying hard now and Derek who has been sitting on the couch silently listening gets up and wraps her in his arms. He moves back to the couch with her in his arms whispering soft words into her hair. They sit like that until he hears soft snores from her. Then he looks up and sees her roommates in the hallway looking at him.

"Is she alright?" George whispers.

"Can I get you something?" Izzy wonders.

"She is sleeping George, but she is not OK, could you please bring her some water for when she wakes up Izzy" Derek whispers as he slowly rocks her.

"That girl is extra ordinary" Mark says and sits down in a chair.

"Yeah, she is"

The front door suddenly slams shut and they can hear Cristina's bike take off with a loud roar.

* * *

Dr Richard Webber is sitting in his office listening to the woman in front of him.

"You are a fool Richard, what on earth went through you mind when you refused to sign that paper? She was a patient at that time! A patient scared of the future! A patient already brought down of her mother's death! A girl that has had to conquer the impossible to become a surgeon! Every single achievement that girl has won has been hard earned since high school! And you want to use her as a way to promote this huge dinosaur!"

"But she has impossible demands. She wants the gallery to be opened for invited people only, we are a teaching hospital damn it."

"Who did she want in there Richard?" Adele reaches for the legal gag paper and reads aloud "surgical interns and neuro residents, neuro fellows and attendings from SGH first and if there is more seats available visiting neurosurgeons. Can't you fill up your gallery with those? Do you really need any other people watching and learning from a neurosurgery?"

"But the surgery might go on for twenty four hours"

"So, this is a once in a lifetime surgery, don't you think your residents will camp up there. They won't want to miss a second of it. You are allowed to use the tape for educational purposes. She allows you every teaching opportunity possible from it. She doesn't want more people staring at her then needed."

"But she won't let the gallery be opened until she is under anesthetic."

"She doesn't want anyone she knows seeing her naked and vulnerable, she wants to be covered up and that the spectators only see the surgical area."

"OK, but the rehabilitation"

"What about the rehabilitation, she states here that she will if the surgery is a success allow follow ups be recorded for teaching opportunities. What she doesn't want is a camera in her face and questions like 'what do you feel now' or 'how does it feel to not use the wheel-chair' she is open for educational purposes but that has nothing to do with her personal life. Richard you have to find her, apologize profusely ask her kindly to withdraw her resignation and hand her this paper signed, then treat her like any other VIP patient you have at this hospital." Adele is interrupted by the office door slamming into the wall.

* * *

"What are you doing Dr Yang?" Dr Webber had time to ask before Cristina slammed a paper down on his desk.

"I am probably the second intern resigning today but my guess is that before the week is over there will be a lot more interns, residents and attendings coming this way. Do you know that the lobby is full of hospital staff using the wireless internet to search for new positions? As soon as they get them they will be heading this way. The local news should get a tip about it pretty soon and then you will have them on your ass as well."

Richard stared at the angry Dr Yang and realized he had done so many stupid things that he didn't know where to start to solve the mess.

"Richard you need to start with finding Meredith and apologizing"

"Where can I find her Dr Yang?"

"Crying at home" Cristina left the office without looking back.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Meredith wakes up in the arms of Derek. She can hear him talking with Mark and from the sound from the kitchen Izzy was making cupcakes. Then it must be George in the shower. She lay there listening to the homey sounds from her roommates. How would she get that when she was in Boston? She could of course get a couple of roommates but that wouldn't be the same, they wouldn't be Izzy, George and Mark. She inhaled the unique scent of Derek and revealed in the comfort of being held in his arms. He wouldn't be there either. She wouldn't have her podiatrist there just Julia and Doc Bill. She buries deeper into Derek's chest as new tears and sobs rip through her body.

"Hush Mer, everything will be OK, I'll promise" Derek whispers into her hair and rocks her slowly. He kisses her hair and deeply inhales her flowery scent. Finally she can stop crying. When she looks up from Derek's wet shirt he reaches for a glass of water on the table.

"Here you are Mer, Izzy brought it for you."

"Thank you"

"Can I talk to you now?"

She slowly nods her head and makes a small attempt to move out of his embrace. His response is to tighten his arms around her a little more.

"Are you comfortable like this, I am" he whispers into her hair and she stills her movement and just enjoys being held.

"Meredith, do you want me to do the surgery?"

"I don't want it"

"Why?"

"I can't do it here if Richard can't accept my need for some kind of privacy"

"What if I tell you that you can have it done at either Boston General or Mount Sinai, New York? Would you want it done there?"

"Maybe…"

"I have privileges at both and I can have an OR and staff ready to go this weekend at both hospitals. They will sign the papers, that can Dr Anderson and Dr Carmichael vouch for."

"Can you tell me more about the surgery?"

"Sure" he moves her to his side and gets up to retrieve his laptop.

Mark moves to her other side and wraps his arm around her shoulder and gives a hug.

"Are you OK?"

"Maybe I will be after you have done some needle point on me."

"Let's listen to Derek and then you can decide."

Derek is drawing a picture of the tumor on her living room wall when there is a knock on the door.

* * *

Richard left through the back door from the hospital and Adele picked him up. Within minutes they parked on the road outside Meredith's house. Richard was pushed up to the door by Adele who reached around him and knocked. The door was opened by Dr Stevens.

"What do you want?" she asked rudely before she saw Mrs. Webber behind Dr Webber.

"Sorry Mrs. Webber"

"Dr Stevens, may I speak with Dr Grey?"

"I don't think so, she is discussing her surgery with her doctor."

"Oh, so she will have it done… fine… then I'll make sure everything is set at the hospital."

"Why bother, she is not doing it here. It will be on the east-coast this weekend. By the way, I'll need the coming week off, to take care of her, then I'll need every fourth week off until she is back working."

"Why, you live here with her, we can make the schedule to work so someone always is home with her."

"That is what I'm asking for but since she will be on the east-coast I will need every fourth week off."

"She will not be here?"

"No, so thank you for helping out with the scheduling but now I have to finish up before her going away party at Joe's tonight, nice seeing you again Mrs. Webber" she starts closing the door but stops and adds

"And she doesn't want to see you at Joe's tonight. I believe she has said her good bye to you Dr Webber" she closes the door.

After about a minute there is a new knock and Izzy walks back expecting to see the mover coming to pack Meredith's stuff.

"Oh, are you still here?" she asks Dr Webber.

"May I talk to Meredith please" Dr Webber says between his gritted teeth.

"Wait here and I will ask her" Izzy walks back into the living room where Derek's painting is almost complete. It is beautiful in all it ugliness.

"Meredith, Dr Webber and his wife is by the door and he wants to speak with you."

"I'll be happy to say good bye to Mrs. Webber but Dr Webber and I spoke enough earlier today."

When Izzy turns around to tell the Webbers what Meredith said she almost collides with Dr Webber's broad chest.

"I'm sorry Dr Webber but she doesn't want to speak with you, only Mrs. Webber if you excuse."

"I heard and I don't excuse you. I need to speak with her NOW" he moves around Izzy and walks into the living room where he is met by Dr Sloan and Shepherd side by side shielding Meredith.

"What part of Dr Stevens' message did you not understand?" Mark barked.

"Dr Sloan, Dr Shepherd please let him speak with Meredith" Mrs. Webber was heard from the hall.

"We will stay with her and if you say one wrong word we will remove you from this house" Derek threatens Dr Webber.

"You should all hear him out" Mrs. Webber said.

"Izzy, George get in here" Mark yells "are Yang and Karev here as well?"

"No they aren't here" George says as he enters the room and sits down in the recliner.

"Mrs. Webber why don't you sit in the chair" Izzy says as she enters the room and sits on the armrest beside George. Derek and Mark positions themselves on each side of Meredith. Mark rests his arm behind her back. Everyone is silent while Richard just looks at Meredith and she refuses to look up from her hands. She is twirling her watch around her wrist.

"Richard" Mrs. Webber encourages him to begin.

Richard Webber takes a deep breath and then breaks the silence.

"Meredith" he begins but she looks up and her eyes shoots daggers at him.

"You have no right to call me by my first name. I am Dr Grey to you" she looks down again and feels a small squeeze from Mark. Richard clears his throat and starts over.

"Dr Grey… I am so sorry for how I treated you today… I am sorry for what I put you through… I am sorry for not respecting your privacy… and trying to use your situation to benefit the hospital… and me. I want you to withdraw your resignation and" he looked at Derek who stared back at him "and let Dr Shepherd do the surgery here at SGH… not to benefit the hospital but for you to be amongst friends in your own home. Doing your rehab at the hospital while finishing your internship and become the great surgeon you are destined to be… Please reconsider your resignation" he finish his short speech and it is like the air emptying a balloon. His knees go weak and he has to reach for the doorframe to hold him up.

"Will you sign the paper?"

"Yes, I have it here already signed" putting the paper on the table in front of Meredith.  
Meredith looked at the piece of paper before looking up as both Cristina and Alex came through the door in a run being paged by Izzy."

"What's up" Karev stared at Dr Webber and Cristina just ignored him before pushing down between Derek and Meredith on the couch.

"Are you OK?" she asked Meredith who nodded in response. Cristina looked at both Mark and Derek who also nodded and that made Cristina to turn and stare at Dr Webber.

"Dr Webber if I stay and if I have this surgery there will be some conditions. First one, you may never address me with my first name if I haven't addressed you with yours. Second, you are not welcome to watch the surgery from the OR nor the gallery. Third, I will probably have more conditions and I make them up as we go" Cristina squeezed Meredith's hand.

"Will you stay?" she whispered to Meredith.

"What do you think?" Meredith whispered back.

"Will you do the surgery?"

"Can we talk somewhere else?"

"Sure, McSteamy help her up" Cristina orders Mark and he lifts Meredith over to her chair "Excuse us, we will be back" she says as she follows Meredith into her bedroom.

* * *

"What on earth have you painted on the wall?" Mrs. Webber asks.

"Is that Meredith's tumor? Cool" Alex exclaims.

"We don't have a white board and Derek wanted to explain something for Meredith, she said it was OK" Mark says as he stands up. Izzy jumps up and becomes the hostess.

"Can I get you something coffee, soda or water? I have some cupcakes freshly from the oven" she looks at Mrs. Webber who slowly stands up after giving her husband a stern look.

"I'll join you in the kitchen if that is OK for you and we can leave the gentlemen here"  
Mark looks at Derek and motions for him to follow him upstairs. George and Alex find them selves alone with Dr Webber who has taken his wife seat.

"Well Dr Webber I have some stuff to do if you excuse me" George stutters and Alex follows him after sending an evil glare at Dr Webber.

* * *

Meredith lifts herself over to her bed and scoots up to lean against the headboard. Cristina jumps into bed beside her.

"What do you want to do Meredith?"

"I'm scared Cristina"

"Of what?"

"Dying"

"Is it a huge risk?"

"No, but higher than for regular surgery. I would be under for maybe twenty four hours and you know what that means."

"Yeah, but what would it be worth to walk, run and dance again?"

"A lot" Meredith answers with tears in her eyes."

"Are you in good shape?"

"Yeah, according to the tests, I am"

"So every thing costs and to regain the use of your legs you need to take this risk."

"Yeah but…"

"What will happen if the surgery goes bad?"

"I've asked Derek to let me die"

"Dying sucks but there is a good chance for him to pull this off, right?"

"Yeah, if he gets it out the possibility to walk is greater than eighty percent, probably even above ninety"

"I would do it for those odds and I would do it here, not on the east-coast"

"What about working here?"

"You have him in a small box and he will do what ever you ask him right now. Do you know that the hospital is only doing emergency surgeries as of now? Everyone that can, is on sick leave and that is everyone from the surgeons down to the janitors."

"Why?"

"Because a lot of people heard your screaming contest this morning and suddenly we all got this annoying bug that keeps us away from the hospital. You have made a lot of friends this year."

"But I don't want them to talk about me!"

"They are not talking, they care and your requests are not over the top. I know about them since I overheard Taylor and Debbie talking."

"How come then that people are on sick leave today?"

"That is because people heard that Dr Webber wanted to rip off your privacy during this surgery. If he can do it to you then he can do it to anyone and the staff has higher norms than that. For them this is not about you. It is more a protest against Dr Webber. Do you know what I did today?"

"No, what did you do?"

"I walked in to Dr Webber and handed in my resignation, do you think it could be a condition of yours that every ones action today is scratched?"

"You did what, are you crazy?"

"No mad, I planed to follow you to Boston"

"Thank you and I will put that as a condition"

"So you think I should do it?"

"Yeah, I want to see this hardcore surgery, it will be a kick ass surgery and I can sit for twenty fours in the gallery. Izzy will probably bring food. It will be great and in the end you will walk. Win-win situation"

Meredith looks long and hard at Cristina and tries to detect any hidden feelings. She can't find any and let's her breath out.

"OK, I'll do it"

"Great, let's get out of here and find some food and then we can have a last go at Joe's before they have you to sign into the hospital tomorrow evening."

Meredith looks around the room, this might be one of the last times she sees this room and that are a really scary feeling. She moves back into her chair and realizes that it might be a time limit on how many more times she need to this.

* * *

"Dr Webber, I'll accept your apology and I'll do the surgery if my demands are met and I have one more condition. Every stupid thing the staff has done today in protest is to be scratched and I mean everything" she said and left him for the kitchen. All the others were congregated in there and looked at her when she came in.

"I'll do it here" she simply said.

"Who's up for Joe's, Meredith needs one last night before going under the knife" Cristina says entering the kitchen.

"I can't" Derek says "I have work to do" he gives Meredith a dreamy smile before leaving the kitchen punching on his blackberry. When he passed Dr Webber he looked at him shortly before saying

"You were lucky this time, don't ever do a stunt like this again"

"Richard I believe you are needed at the hospital, do I need to drive you?" Adele enters the room.

Derek has almost shut the front door before turning and saying

"You can ride with me. I've some stuff that you need to know anyhow and this way I save some time." The two men walks out the door and Adele returns to the kitchen to spend some time with Meredith before they all went to Joe's.


	23. Chapter 23

**Surgery...**

**Chapter 23**

Meredith has asked that Cristina should prep her for surgery. It is almost six am and the hospital is waking up. Everyone can feel that it is something in the air. The neuro department is buzzing of life and every neurosurgeon will at least have the chance to watch from the gallery at some point but the other patients demand care as well and someone had to be on-call for the pit. Derek had slept until four a clock and felt well rested. He knew he had to take breaks and get some cat-napping during the surgery but he also knew he wouldn't want to leave for even a second. Mark was appointed to keep watch over all the surgeons and making them rest regularly. The gallery was locked until Derek told it could be unlocked and Izzy was in charge of the door. She and Alex had charge over the gallery that would be emptied upon request or as soon as Mark had put the last stitch in the incision. George cleared the hallway and secured an elevator for the transportation to the OR. Meredith knew that she wouldn't get back to the room until after at least forty-eight hours.

"Cristina" Meredith said before Cristina could call for an orderly to help move her.

"Yeah"

"A copy of my will is in the top drawer here. Gloria has the original. You are appointed as my medical proxy and remember that if the only way to make me survive includes cutting my cord they are to let me die. Promise me this" Meredith looked Cristina in the eyes and waited for answer.

"You better not let me down" Cristina replied and called for an orderly. With her back to Meredith she could wipe a tear away.

They were met outside the OR by the surgical residents and Meredith's friends. Her friends all hugged her except Cristina that reminded her

"Remember, you are dark and twisty, you don't do light. I'll be the one kicking your ass into shape in a couple of hours."

The residents move her into the OR where Derek, Doc Bill and Dr Carmichael is waiting together with Mark.

"Oh, there is my girl" Doc Bill exclaims.

"Are you ready Mer?" Derek asks

She nods in response and searches for Mark

"Mark, you know what I asked of you, you are my eyes and ears in here and you keep this bunch of surgeons in line."

"Will do, go to sleep sleepyhead and let us work, se you soon" Mark smiles at her and kisses her forehead.

The anesthetic is started and Meredith is out. The residents turn and drape her together with the nurses, just leaving her long and slim spine in view for the surgeons. Derek and the other surgeons scrub in and when they enter, they each have their own pre-surgery rituals. Derek asks for the cameras to start, they are streaming the picture to both Mount Sinai and Boston General. Their neuro-departments are under the same obligations as Seattle Grace. He also asks for opening the gallery while they prepare and take a last look at the scans. He sends the anesthesiologist a look and gets a nod in return. After a final look around the OR he says

"It's a beautiful day to save a life, let's have some fun"

"Start the time" he hears a scrub nurse call.

"Ten blade please" he says and holds his right hand out. A long red line is to be seen chasing his scalpel and Dr Harry Bright keeps the bleeders under control. After about an hour they can all see the tumor. Derek steps back and takes a break while his fellow surgeons take a closer look.

"How are you doing?" he hears in his left ear.

"I'm fine Mark"

"Take your first break and let the others in here prepare her for you to move in for the first major cut of the tumor. It will take at least another ninety minutes before anything can be cut. You and Harry need your first break, coffee, a sandwich and some down time."

"Are you staying here?"

"No, Bailey will be here and keep the surgeons in line." They leave together with Dr Bright after a final look.

"How is it going?" Dr Webber meets them outside the scrub room. He is honoring his promise but it is still he who has to keep the head of the board updated as requested.

"Everything is going according to plan this far. We are taking a break as the others prepare for starting to remove the tumor." Derek says as he walks towards the coffee cart.  
Webber hurries off towards his office to send a first report.

Derek, Harry and Mark are waiting in line to order when Mrs. Chang waves them to the front.

"What can I make for you today gentlemen?"

"What have we done to deserve this honor, skipping the line?"

"You are performing miracles on my favorite intern" Mrs. Chang prepares their orders.

"What kind of sandwiches would you like for your next break? I'll be getting them from the deli down the street" she says and hands them a bagel each with cream cheese. Mark grabs for his wallet when she stops him and tells him that the surgical team will all get what ever they want until the surgery is done."

"Do you have the name on everyone involved in the surgery?" Harry asked surprised.

"Dr Webber gave me a list and said that you should have whatever you wanted"

"He is making up for bad behavior" Mark mutters.

They eat their snacks and Mark shoves them into an on-call room for some rest.

"I'll come and get you when its time. You better stay here"

"Yes Daddy" Derek mocks him before getting into bed. Harry climbs into the top bunk and the two of them tries to rest.

Mark is waking them from a light slumber an hour later and they scrub back in. Derek takes a look at a quick replay of the time he was gone and can't see anything out of ordinary. He checks with the anesthesiologist for vitals.

"OK, Sam lets begin this phase. He is studying the tumor and it is huge. Where is he supposed to start cutting he silently asks himself before he says

"Sam, any suggestions?"

"No"

"Harry, Bailey, Mark any suggestions?"

"No" both Harry and Bailey answers.

"Anywhere" Mark responds.

Derek looks at the tumor one more time before making the first cut to remove the tumor.

Three hours later, Mark steps up to the table after sending Dr Carmichael and Bailey off an hour and a half before.

"Time Derek, you and Harry need a rest. Let the east-coast doctors have some fun now."

"I'm in the flow now" Derek protests.

"Doesn't matter, you are out. Bill and Sam can make it for a while"

Derek leaves the table reluctantly and tries to estimate how much longer it will be. He think that eighteen hours may be sufficient if nothing happens. A quick look at the clock gives that they've been on at for a little more than four hours.

Every ninety minute one of the three teams is sent to rest. It is ten pm and Derek has been back for half an hour when Meredith's vitals suddenly drop. She has trouble with her hearth beat. Derek has just cut a tricky part and they all watch in fear the monitors screaming out their alarm. After a minute the monitors slow down and they all get back to work.

"No more of those, please" Sam who is working with Derek mutters.

Bailey and Bright just keep chasing bleeders without saying anything. The next set works without a problem and Derek is back and it is one forty five am and he has a couple of major decisions to make.

"I need a new set of pictures with contrasts before deciding which one to cut."

Dr Pemberton is paged and the equipment brought in place. Derek is taking a short break before the pictures are done. After evaluating the scans he proceeds. When the next cut is done Meredith's vitals drop again and she has a small seizure. Derek is worried that he didn't get the scalpel away in time and nicked the cord. He checks and rechecks the area but can't see any spinal fluid.

"I need more suction over here. Did I nick it? Sam what do you see.

The microscope is refocused but neither the residents nor the surgeons can se any spinal fluid. Derek feels bad but he has to move on. It is during his next set he finally can lift the tumor out. It is huge and the pathology will have some fun dissecting it. When the tumor is out and the bleeder is under control Derek runs out to the scrub room and throws up. He is totally beaten and Dr Pemberton is the one making him scrub out and leads him to the on-call room. Dr Webber comes running for his update but Charles stops him and shoves Derek inside and pushes him down on the bed. He throws the blanket over him and leaves him in the dark. It is not long before the rest of the neurosurgeons join him. The residents are in another room.

Mark is in charge of the surgery and has begun to close the wound. He is working painstakingly slowly with his sutures. The scar will be almost invisible. When the last stitch is in, the gallery is closed and the cameras turned off. Meredith is transferred to a bed that can be turned over. It has two mattresses one with an opening for her spine and one with a hole for her face, if they put the 'lid' on and flip the bed upside down she is on her stomach looking at the floor and the top can be removed and they can look at her spine. Put the bottom lid on and flip again and she is on her back again. She is wheeled off to recovery and Mark scrubs out and reports to Dr Webber before crashing in the last bed in the on-call room.

Derek pager goes off at six fifty am. It is a 911 from recovery. He takes off with a run and it is luckily just down the hall. When he arrives Meredith is having a seizure again. They load her up with Phenobarbital and she calms down. They are extremely careful not to disturb her spine. Derek makes a first neurological check out of many. Everything seems OK but he is still worried he nicked the cord. At one pm they have a gathering and sums up the surgery with every participant. When they are done an hour later Derek finds Dr Webber in his office and reports. Everyone is thankful she made it this far. Now it is a waiting game. Firstly she will be let out of the anesthesia and secondly they will start monitoring how her nerves react. Derek is very worried about this phase since it is the central part of her regaining control over her legs. Derek is sitting beside her as they wait for her to wake up. He tries to do paperwork but has trouble focusing. He finds himself staring at her face. The part he can see and she is stunning even now. The breathing tube is still in place and the next step is to remove it soon as possible but she should regain consciousness first. Another hour goes by and her friends drop in as often as they can. Sam Carmichael and Bill Anderson are preparing to leave in the morning. They will stay in contact and the three of them all wants to see when she walks for the first time. At eight pm Cristina arrives and throws him out. She tells him to shower, shave and eat a hot meal before returning. She will sit there in the meanwhile since she has a lot of charts to finish.

Derek is back in Meredith's room. He is stroking her hand and has begun to tell her stories about his nieces and nephews.

"Earlier today I got a phone call from Ben who is five years old and into superheroes. He is not as much into parents and grownups… Why I asked him?.. Because grownups and parents never do any super cool superhero things he said… I then asked what a boring grownup could do to become a cool grownup… Oh they could rescue people from killer whales and sew back the feet the whale had eaten and stuff like that… I asked him if making a person walk again was cool and then he said only if I needed to kill some yucky monster to make the person walk… So I told him that that was exactly what I had done… I had removed a yucky monster from someone's back and the monster was killed and now I was waiting for that person to wake up and start walking. And guess what he said… I am officially a super cool superhero. It is just one tiny problem… or really two tiny problems. The first one is that you have to wake up and walk, otherwise I won't be a superhero and I really do want to be one in the eyes of Ben and the second one, is that he really wants to meet you and see for himself that you can walk. The third problem, and this is really huge, is that Mark did one good job and it will be hard to see the scar and convince Ben that I really took out a monster from your back and Mark will claim a part of the superhero glory too… What do you say Mer? Do you want to be part of a five year old boy's superhero world? I believe it is really fun. We can race him and launch tickling attacks on him and since we are two we might even win." He kept stroking her hand and was now caressing her wrist. Her skin was very soft and he dragged his fingertips along her bare arm. When he reached her elbow her arm slightly twitched.

"Are you waking up?" he whispered keeping up his gentle caress of her arm. A minute later her eyelids fluttered and she tried to cough.

"Easy Meredith, take it easy. I need to remove your tube just a moment and we'll get some help to do it quickly" he had paged the nurse already and Taylor was the nurse responding.

"How is she doing doc?"

"Help me remove her tube, she is awake"

Together they worked quickly and removed her tube.

"Drink this Meredith" Nurse Taylor held a straw to her lips.

"What?" she said after swallowing some cold water.

"You had surgery, do you remember?" Derek looked at her.

"Mmm"

"We removed your tumor"

"Cord?"

"Intact I hope, we got the tumor out in one huge piece"

"Good"

"You will be in this position until you healed a little. I don't want your spine to move just yet and Mark is overprotective about his needle point. He doesn't want anything or anyone damaging his pretty work."

"Pussy"

"Yeah, he is. Are you in any pain?"

"Some"

"Where"

"Back"

"I'll order some more morphine. It will make you sleep and that way time will go faster until we can get you into a nicer position."

"Mmm… sup… hero"

"What… you heard?"

"Yeh… want… tickl…"

"We'll do that as soon as you can help me prove to Ben that I am a superhero"

"You a superhero, I'll beg to differ" Mark said as he stepped into the room.

"Are you awake sleepyhead?"

"Mmmm"

"Are you sleepy again?"

"Uhm"

"OK, but you need to explain the superhero mix up tomorrow"

" – "

"Mer?"

They got no response, she was out again. Together they left, bantering about superheroes, leaving her under the care of Nurse Taylor.

The next couple of days Derek or Dr Harry Bright preformed neurological test on her twice a day. After six days Mark pulled her stitches and replaced them with stripes but she still had no feeling in her legs and Derek had started to worry. The bad feeling from surgery returned and he spent hours going over the films trying to find out what went wrong. Why she doesn't regain any feeling, any sensations at all is more than he can understand. As it is now there is no change for her except the scarring and the absence of a tumor. Nothing on the positive scale.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

The physiotherapist began torturing Meredith on the third day after the surgery. A week after surgery she had had enough. Derek heard her yelling from the other side of the hallway and hurried over to her room.

"What's up?" he looks at the phys therapist and a guy he never seen before standing nose to nose staring at each other and Meredith was sitting slightly up in her bed yelling.

"Nick, Susan is in charge as long as I'm in hospital. You will have your chance when I'm out of this hell hole. I don't care what any of you do as long as it doesn't involve me. Get out and let me sleep" she sees Derek then and it is enough to start her again

"And you podiatrist and superhero wanna be, look what you have done. I let you cut because you promised me that I would get back control of my legs. What did you get me? Nothing! NOTHING AT ALL BUT FOR AN ITCHING SCAR ON MY BACK! Everyone, get out, NOW AND CLOSE THE DAMN DOOR!" she falls back on her bed and shuts her eyes as tears well up. Derek and the other two steps out into the hall and the door closes behind them.

"PT Moore, how are you today?" Derek turned towards Susan.

"I'm great Dr Shepherd" she sent Nick an evil eye before continuing "have you met Mr. Nick Armstrong before?"

"No, I'm Dr Derek Shepherd, the neurosurgeon that is responsible for Meredith's surgery."

"Nice to meet you Dr Shepherd, I'm Nick Armstrong, Meredith's personal trainer from YMCA."

"I wasn't aware that she has a personal trainer."

"I've worked with her since she moved here. She is in the pool at least twice every week and does some work out as well."

"That is very good"

"Yeah, and now I want her to get back into shape as soon as possible and she can use weights in bed and I have some exercises for her legs as well."

"I want PT Moore to prescribe her exercises for the time being since her spine is very delicate at the moment. All her muscles supporting her spine must be strengthened."

"OK, but I know how to work with people in wheel-chairs. I know what they need and how to get them back in shape."

"Do you know what we have done and what the goal is?"

"Take her tumor out"

"And?"

"And what?"

"We expect her to regain feeling in her legs and walk again."

"Really, she didn't tell me that."

"You understand now why PT Moore is so careful about her. She is a paraplegic that can recover."

"Oh, OK I can come twice every week and help you out and learn how I can help her at the gym. You do know that she is a very good swimmer?"

"Yeah, and as soon as plastics clear her for water she can start workout in the hospital rehab pool."

"She will probably like that and be a lot nicer to everyone around when her energy can focus on something." Susan said "she is in a very normal psychological state at the moment and she wants stuff to move forward."

"Let me and Mark do some check-ups and maybe tomorrow she could do a tour of rehab even get in the water shortly."

* * *

Derek knocks on the door but there is no answer so he steps in carefully not sure what to expect. Meredith is in her bed sulking.

"Meredith, I want to do a check and see if the nurses could disconnect you from the last tubes. You can use the bathroom after that and after Mark has done his check you may take a shower."

"Really" she asks with hope in her voice "I could get out of here?"

"Not so fast, you can get out of bed maybe thirty minutes twice a day for today and tomorrow and then we reevaluate the outcome. How does that sound?"

"Great hurry up, I really want out of this room."

Derek finishes his check-up

"You still can't move your toes?"

"No" she answers dismissively.

"OK, I'll get Taylor or Debbie in here"

* * *

Ten minutes later Derek returns to the room pushing her personal wheel-chair.

"Want to go for a ride?" he asks with a smile.

"YES, sorry about that, yes I want to go for a ride"

He carefully lifts her over to the chair.

"I don't want you to do this by your self until PT has cleared you. Do you understand?"

She sighs deeply but nods. Derek pushes her chair through the hall way after wrapping a blanket around her and over legs. He pushes for the private elevator servicing the VIP floor and they go for the roof.

"I thought you would like to get out for the moment."

"On the roof she finds a basket with two cups of coffee and her favorite muffins."

"Where did this come from?"

"Mrs. Chang at the coffee cart is missing her best intern. Did you know that during your surgery all of the surgical team got special treatment? When ever we came out during our breaks she made us skip the line and had her grandson picking up sandwiches and such from the deli down the street."

"She is so sweet. I got a pretty bouquet of daisies from her the other day." That bouquet stood out in a room filled with balloons, a huge teddy bear from Alex and vases of roses from various people. She was no rose girl and the bear was almost scary. Cristina had left a huge pile of medical handbooks on her nightstand and Izzy had given her some copies of Cosmo to read.

They enjoyed their coffee and the view of Seattle. Suddenly Derek's pager goes off. After a quick look he paged Mark to the roof before turning to her.

"Can you sit her nicely until Mark arrives? There is an airlifted head trauma coming that I need to look at." They heard the chopper closing in. She slowly nodded starting to get tired just from being out of bed.

When the patient was unloaded and the trauma team began moving the patient into the elevator Mark came running.

"Mark please bring Meredith back to her bed and see if she can be cleared to shower this afternoon" Derek yelled at Mark.

* * *

After lunch the following day, Cristina searched and found Derek in his office where he once again was searching for any mistakes done during Meredith's surgery. She knocked on the frame and he looked up with a frown on his face and barked

"Yes… Yang"

"Dr Shepherd, how would we know if Meredith's spine is working just fine?"

"I would expect her to be able to curl her toes when stimulating the arch of her foot. Why?"

"Well, I was having lunch with her today and a fly landed on her left foot. She shook it of as if it tickled her. She kind of wiggled her leg from the knee and down but I don't think she realized it herself."

"She did?" Derek was intrigued and eager to go and see by himself.

"Should we tell her?"

"I think so, because then she can try to do it consciously" he said as he reached for his lab coat and checked that he had all his stuff in his pockets.

"Let's go and check her out" he added with a smile.

* * *

Meredith looked up when Derek and Cristina both entered her room.

"And what is the occasion of you two coming and visiting me?" Just then Cristina's pager goes off.

"Shit, I'm in the pit, have to go" she runs off and Meredith looks at Derek with questions in her eyes.

"Well, I had some time over and is trying to escape my paperwork" Derek says with a dreamy smile.

"Did you have a good lunch?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you planning for your afternoon escape time?"

"Rehab and a quick shower"

"Sound like a good plan" he answers while he lets his right index finger stroke across the arch of her left foot. Her foot moved. He repeated it while asking about her pain and it moved again. He did the same with her right foot and it moved as well.

"Meredith can you move your left foot for me?"

She stared at him before answering

"No, I can't. I couldn't this morning and I can't now" she snarled at him.

"Meredith, don't be mad, just try" he pledged with his dreamy smile.

She looked at her foot and concentrated on moving it but it didn't move, not even a twitch. He looked into her eyes and said

"Feel this and look at your foot" and then he draw a nail across the arch. She looked in astonishment as her foot curled and without having to ask he repeated the action with her other foot.

"It moves, Derek it moves" she whispered and tears flooded her eyes before she started to cry. "You are a superhero" she sobbed before he wrapped her into his arms.

He hugged her and kissed her hair until the tears dried up. Somehow had he moved her into his lap and when she looked up his brilliant blue eyes had traces of tears in them as well. Their eyes locked, green with blue, and he leaned down and kissed her slightly parted lips. The kiss was soft and tender but she felt like she had been electrocuted and a soft moan was heard but who did it come from? When they broke the kiss it felt like she was missing some vital part of her. Her breathing was elaborated and when she looked at Derek he looked dumbstruck. They stared at each other until he reached down for a second kiss while mumbling against her lips

"I have to do this one more time"

"Please" she whispered before her mind went blank again. They separated reluctantly and Derek hugged her one more time before moving her back into bed.

"Meredith" he said tentatively.

"Yes"

"I'm not sure what you want… but I would very much like to kiss you again and if you want to… I do want more then kiss you but we can't right now. You have to be released from here... Go out with me the day after you get out of here.

"I… Derek…"

"Please"

"Yes and I want… more" she whispered blushing a little.

"Great, we have a date. Let's get back on earth before we get caught by Bailey" he winked at her and returned into doctor mood. "Practice wiggling your toes but don't be worried if you can't just yet. Remember it was a long time since you used your legs. You will be like a baby learning to walk just not as quickly."

She smiled a beautiful smile at him and turned her look towards her feet with concentration imprinted on her face. He realized he hade seen that face before, in the OR. She was as concentrated as there. He had to steal a last kiss and leaned forward with her lips as his goal when he heard someone clearing the throat.

"Dr Shepherd… Meredith, how are you today?"

"Oh, hi Dr Bailey, my feet moved?"

"Really, show me" Bailey couldn't keep her stern voice any longer.

"I can't do it by myself yet but I'm practicing" she giggled before her concentration returned to her face. Derek and Bailey looked at each other and smiled. Mark entered the room at that moment

"Why do you smile like fools" he asked Derek and Bailey before turning to Meredith.

"My feet moved" Meredith said still trying to make them move on her command.

"We did it, we are superheroes, high five" Mark slaps Derek's hands before scoping Meredith up into his arms giving her a, smack on the lips, kiss. "You will be one hot walking babe."

"Oh, thanks Mark" she giggled "let me down again, I want my feet to move some more."

Derek tickled her feet again and they twitched, both of them and Mark gave a shout and started to do some kind of victory dance. The dancing and laughing got more people into the room and she had to show them as well how her feet twisted each time they got tickled. Derek saw that she was getting tired and emptied the room.

"You need to sleep some before PT learns about this and wants you to do it some more."

He couldn't resist but to give her a quick kiss before leaving to call his fellow surgeons about her progress. It was not much but he felt like he was the first man on the moon.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

It was the day for Meredith to leave the hospital. She was ready to go, well wheel, home. Her things were packed and she was dressed in jeans and a tight top. Around her face the hair curled and she felt good. Maybe better then she was supposed to but she blamed it on Derek. Just thinking his name made the butterflies in her stomach launch into a frenzy. Last night, he snuck into her room and they had made out like crazy. It was just the fear of getting caught that made their clothes stay on. Hands, lips and tongues had been every where. She blushed about it like a high school girl just thinking about it. Tonight she was to meet with everyone at Joe's and Derek would be there. She wondered if they would go home together. Last night she had fallen asleep in his arms and she felt so safe.

"Are you ready?" Mark came in together with Dr Bright who was to sign her papers.

"Yeah, I'm as good as new" she smiled wondering where Derek was.

"Derek will come to Joe's tonight, he is stuck in surgery" Mark whispered in her ear.

"Mark" she blushed furiously.

"I know" he simply stated.

"What do you know?"

"About you and Derek"

"What about us?"

"How many times have I been just outside this door when you just kissed Derek?"

She thought about it and realized that he had been at the door making loud noise before entering many times since the first kiss.

"How did you find out?"

"Let's just say that you are very deaf and a little loud when you make out. I walked in on you the day after Derek showed us how your feet could wiggle."

"Sorry and thank you for not telling"

"I haven't even told Derek yet. I'm keeping it a secret until I can get something from him" he winked at her and smiled before continuing "he is a good guy and you will be good together, but be careful so mum doesn't catch on. She will make an appearance as soon as she finds out."

Harry returned with Meredith's signed papers and Meredith wheeled down the hall with Mark following carrying her bag and a large box with books and stuff. Meredith made a quick stop at the nurses' desk and asked them to distribute her flowers to those that didn't get any. The VIP elevator took her straight down to the back of the lobby and when she wheeled towards the exit she heard a well-known voice calling her name.

"Dr Grey" Dr Webber called her name for the first time since he was at her house.

"Yes Dr Webber"

"I'm happy to see you so fit. Your schedule will be sent home during next week and we look forward seeing you in scrubs again" he sent a small smile.

She just looked at him for an extra second before answering

"Thank you sir" wheeling off leaving Webber alone looking after her with tears in his eyes.

* * *

Meredith arrives to Joe's in Mark's arms. She is met by friends hollering, whistling and shouting. Mark places her by the bar on a stool and Joe looks at her with questions in his eyes.

"Water with lime on the rocks please, I'm still on painkillers."

A large glass of water is soon place in front of her.

"It is good to you. I heard that you can wiggle your toes."

"Yeah, it doesn't sound much but I may soon stand on my legs with help."

"That is great news"

"Yeah but won't do me any good until I can stand up by myself" she giggled."

"Did you hear about the bet Drs Sloan and Pemberton started before your surgery?"

"The one where they get points for kisses and sex?"

"Yeah, that one. They left it until this week and tonight is their last night. Pemberton leads by a hundred and five points so we will have the pleasure watching them battle it off tonight."

"Oh, thanks for the warning, I will ban Mark from the house so we can sleep there, the rest of us" she laughed.

* * *

"What are you drinking?" Cristina came straight from the hospital and grabbed her glass before Meredith had a chance to answer. Cristina swallowed and looked at her with questions in her eyes

"What is that, it tastes like water"

"It is water"

"Why, you are at Joe's"

"Yes and I'm still on painkiller. I can't drink."

"That sucks, I had plans on getting you drunk."

"Maybe next time" Cristina moves over to the dartboard to talk to Alex.

* * *

"Is this a good place to hang out?"

"I don't know" she smiled into her glass of water.

"Are you ignoring me?"

"Trying to"

"I'm a guy have to get to know to love"

"So if I know you I'll love you"

"Yes you will" Derek whispered in her ear.

She looked at him and felt herself tingling as she thought about kissing him.

"I want to get out of here"

"Need some help" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Please do, Izzy, George tell Mark and Cristina that I'm going home. I'm tired and Dr Shepherd has promised to bring me."

"OK" Izzy waved at her as Derek swept her into his arms carrying her up the stairs.

"Where is your chair?"

"At home, we left it there as I wouldn't need it tonight."

"Let's go" he walked towards his car when he realized that the car key was in his front pocket.

"Meredith, I need your help. The keys are in my front pocket of my jeans."

"What are you up to?"

"Nothing, I promise but if you want… " he trailed off when she started to dig and she didn't only fetch the keys but caressed him on the way. His lips crashed on hers and he squeezed her between the car door and him until both their heads spun.

"We need to get going before anyone sees us" he whispered.

"I really don't care but maybe we can keep this as our secret and Mark's for a while."

He dropped her into the seat and just stared at her

"Mark's"

"Yeah, he saw us the second day and has been keeping watch over us since then."

"He did what?"

"He used to come in just before others arrived and he was always so very noisy." Derek thinks about it for a little while.

"Let's not tell him I know that he knows, at least not until I can get something from him for it"

"That is almost the same thing he said" Meredith giggled and Derek speed off towards her house.

"May I come in?"

"Yes but I won't offer you coffee. I'll be blunt and offer you my bed instead. I want to sleep in your arms if you are OK with that."

"Can we make out first?"

"Yes you horny dog" she giggled and locked lips with him as soon as he lifted her up again.

* * *

The two of them spent hours making out but stopped before it got too far. She still wasn't cleared for sex and they wanted to date first. But that didn't stop them from sleeping in the arms of each other. At five thirty Derek woke up and sneaked out of the house.

"What is Dr Shepherd doing here?" Izzy asked Mark when he walk into the kitchen.

"Derek, is he here?" Mark looked at Izzy with questions in his eyes.

"Yeah I saw him sneaking out the door on my way down to start the coffee."

"Oh, yeah, that's right. He was too drunk to drive home and he slept on the couch."

"But he left with… Mer" Izzy suddenly understood where Derek had been. "Oh"

"Yes, oh, but don't say anything, I don't want him to know that we know"

"Oh, can I tell Mer?"

"Please don't, she will just get embarrassed and then Derek will find out. Let's have some fun with it instead. There are things I want from him and now I have a chance to get them." Mark smirked at Izzy.

"But what will the hospital say? Is it allowed?"

"You will be residents in just a few weeks and then no one can say anything as long as he doesn't give her special privileges"

"Special about what?" George asked when he came in search for coffee.

"Meredith and Derek" Izzy answered before thinking."

"Izzy!" Mark groaned "it was a secret, remember"

"Sorry"

"Meredith and Derek who?"

"George" both Izzy and Mark groaned

"Oh, that Derek" George said.

"Yeah, oh and it is a secret, no more telling people. Don't tell Cristina and Alex and no one else either" Mark looked at them sternly.

"Who is helping Meredith today?"

"I am" Cristina enters the kitchen dressed in what looked like a PJ.

"Did you come here dressed like that?" Izzy asked with horror in her voice.

"No, I came after Joe's and planned on sleeping in Meredith's room but when I was on my way through her door I saw that Dr Shepherd was not sleeping and neither was Meredith, so I slept on the couch."

"You know"

"About them"

"Yeah, so what. I've know since last week when I walked in on them at the hospital."

Hearing this Mark began laughing. "They had two watchdogs"

"Is Meredith sleeping?"

"Yeah, Dr Shepherd left almost an hour ago and we are keeping it secret that we know about them"

"Where is the coffee?" Cristina asked and went in search for two cups "Mer and I will begin cramming for intern exam today"

"Who won the man whore contest?" Cristina asked with a smirk.

Mark pretended not to hear her.

"Who won?" George asked curiously.

"This man-whore needs to step up his game" Cristina snickered.

"Five points" Mark muttered "I lost by a fucking phone number"

* * *

Meredith and Derek spent as much time together as possible. Their first date was spent in Derek's trailer and mostly in his bed. They had had many sleepovers before they consummated their relationship which they did in the trailer out of sight from their friends. They had decided to tell their friends when the results from the intern exam were posted. Meredith worked twenty hours the first week and increased her hours by one every working day until she reached forty. Derek didn't want her to do more before she could walk a few steps. Her rehab was tuff as both Nick worked with her at the YMCA and Susan at the hospital rehab. She came home from YMCA the day before the exam crying and Mark who as usual had followed her there was carrying pizzas for everyone. He had paged Derek to the house and when they came and she was crying Derek couldn't keep their secret and swept her into his arms comforting her with words and kisses as their friends stood around smiling at the two lovers. When they realized they were busted the others just left them and began opening pizza boxes.

"Aren't you going say anything" Meredith asked with huge eyes

"About what" Alex smirked

"About Derek and me being more then a friends"

"Oh that, we have known for weeks. That is old news" Cristina added with a smirk.

"Why don't you tell them instead, why they are here eating pizza" Mark asked her with a wink.

"Yeah what made Mark buy pizza and why were you crying, Mer?" Derek asked hugging her again.

"Oh, I can stand on my own. I can even stand up in the water, but even so. I can stand on my own!"

"Great news"

"Good work Mer"

"I love you" Derek whispered and first Meredith became absolute still before turning towards him and saying

"I love you too" that was just said when Derek claimed her lips in a searing kiss.

"Get a room" Cristina hollered.

* * *

When Meredith and her friends had gotten their test result and celebrated Derek took Meredith to his cliff for some private celebration.

"I want to ask you two things" he said when they sat watching the sun settle in the horizon.

"What" she asked in total harmony relaxing against his chest.

"Would you like to go with me to the east-coast and meet my family?"

"When?"

"Next week?"

She looked at him before answering with a nervous smile

"Yes"

He leaned down and kissed her parted lips and sneaked a taste of her mouth before pressing his nose into her hair inhaling her flowery scent.

"Thank you Mer"

"What is the second question?"

"Would you make me the luckiest man in universe and marry me?"


	26. Chapter 26

**Thanks for reviewing, you make it fun to publish this story.**

**What did she answer... yes or no? At the end of this chapter you'll get the answer...**

~mcanna  


**Chapter 26**

Meredith and Derek boarded the plane before the rest of the passengers. A flight attendant took her chair out to the loading area as she got strapped into her first class seat.

"Anything I can get you Dr Shepherd?" a female stewardess leaned over Meredith to give Derek a nice view of her cleavage.

"No thank you, I'm fine"

"We will be serving some drinks and snacks as soon as we are in the air" he got a wide toothy smile with that. Meredith was completely ignored by the stewardess and she steamed when more passengers boarded and Derek and her was left on their own.

"What was that, what a bimbo, did you get a good look at what God did not give her as original body parts?"

"What?" Derek was distracted as he was pulling out a medical journal from his carry-on.

"That bimbo laid it all out for you" Meredith muttered grabbing for a copy of the last Cosmo.

"She did, are you jealous?" he whispered in her ear before nibbling at her earlobe.

"No" she tried to not moan.

"This is a very long flight and you will need to use the restroom right?" his hand was tracing lazy circles along her sides.

"Yes, probably" she grabbed his jaw and locked lips with him.

"And it can't be easy for you to get in there all on your own. You will need some help, right?"

"Hmmhmmm"

"And then we can join the high mile club" his lips were following her jaw sliding down her neck towards the spot that made her wild.

"Not now Derek, we have to wait until we are actually in the air" she giggled and pushed him off.

"But you will need help?" he looked at her with his puppy eyes and a dreamy smile on his lips. He was impossible to refuse. She giggled and kissed him quick on his cheek but let her hand glide down his stomach all the way down to his left knee. She heard him catch his breath when her hand caressed his crotch.

The stewardess came by on one more time.

"Everything OK here Dr Shepherd? Anything you need before take off sir?" she flipped her hair over her shoulder.

"I'm fine thank you"

The stewardess started to walk off when Meredith spoke up.

"I need some extra pillows, a blanket and my footrest turned down, please, and a bottle of water… still water" the woman stared at her and looked at Derek

"Is that right Dr Shepherd?" she asked.

Derek looked at her with curiosity in his face.

"Why are you asking me?"

"I… she… wants stuff"

"And is there a problem with that miss?"

"No…" the stewardess still looked like she didn't understand.

"Listen Miss…" he looked at her name tag "Miss Smith, my girlfriend, Dr Grey is partly paralyzed and uses a wheel-chair but I can assure you that her brain is not in her feet. Now please help her get the things she asked for and ask for her forgiveness for your inexcusable behavior towards her and then please let us be helped by another flight attendant for the remainder of this flight."

The stewardess took off with a rush,

"Thank you my very own podiatrist" Meredith kissed him deeply.

Miss Smith soon came back and almost dumped everything in Meredith's lap before slamming down the footrest. She left without saying one word.

"Is this what you have to stand every time you travel?"

"Yes, you know how people always ask you or expect you to tell them what I want or need when we are out at the mall or in a restaurant. You were the same when you found out that I was on your service that's why I called you podiatrist" she giggled.

Derek blushed when he realized he had had almost the same stupid behavior. He realized that her description was very accurate. People saw her but asked him or the one closest to her, questions they should ask her. Meredith had made a comfortable little nest in her seat and was now scanning her magazine for interesting articles and he looked at her. Even here were she looked this stunning, people still saw here as the wheel-chair chick and her chair wasn't even here.

"Meredith, please forgive me for not seeing you but your chair when we first met. I'm so grateful that you made me see you and made me fall in love with you. "

"I love you my brainless podiatrist and superhero"

* * *

Halfway into the flight she needed to use the restroom and Derek carried her there. Usually on longer flights she had to wear a diaper and she hated that. He left her there to tend to her needs before returning after a quick knock on the door and a smirk on his face.

"Do you know that we don't have to sneak to join the high mile club? No one thinks it strange that I'm in here" he chuckled before taking a closer look at her. She was seated on the lid with a seductive smile on her lips. She reached for his belt pulling him closer as he leaned down kissing here deeply. Soon they were lost in their own small heaven.

He cradled her close and they exit the restroom still in a sex haze. The stewardess Miss Smith looked at them with a snotty expression and they could hear her complaints to their new and much nicer steward and his response.

"They took their time in there, doesn't she understand that other passengers might need the restroom and what does he see in her?"

"I think that he sees what a hot babe she is and I believe they used her disability to their advantage and joined the high mile club" the steward chuckled and sent Meredith an appreciative wink and Derek a thumbs up sign. She waved back and Derek smirked before climbing over Meredith into his window seat.

* * *

When they left the plane as the last passengers, Meredith in her wheel-chair and Derek pulling their carryon bags behind, the steward bid them a good day but the stewardess was still sulking.

"Miss Smith, you should learn from this and see your passengers instead of their disabilities. I am so grateful that my handicap is on the outside instead of being brainless" Meredith couldn't help herself saying that to the stupid bimbo.

"By the way you should have chosen a lesser cup size if you are not using them as your own personal floating device" Derek added and left the two flight attendants behind, one furious and one laughing.

* * *

Two hours later they drove up to a beautiful white house with a wrap around porch. The blue door opened with a large bang and two kids about ten years old came running to greet the car.

"Uncle Derek, uncle Derek is here" they shouted for those inside the house and all of the neighborhood as well.

"Yay" a small dark haired boy dressed as superman bolted down the stairs.

"Is that Ben?" Meredith asked with as smile as Derek's car door was wrenched open.

"Hi everyone, have you missed me?" Derek asked with a huge smile for each and every one of them and let them pull him out of the car. Meredith counted to six children and she saw Mrs. Shepherd and two other women along with a couple of teenagers and a man in his late forties up on the porch. Derek hugged and tickled the kids and they dragged him up on the porch.

"Hello Derek" he was greeted by the grown-ups and a quick 'uncle' from the teens.

"Didn't you forget something, son" Mrs. Shepherd looked sternly at him.

"Why isn't she getting out of the car Uncle Derek?" Ben asked and Derek realized. The car was a rental not her custom built one and she couldn't get out by herself. He felt shame before leaning down to Ben.

"Ben do you remember when we talked about superheroes and I told you about taking out a monster and making someone walk?"

"Yeah" Ben answered and looked back to the car.

"Meredith is the one I did that to. She is now relearning how to walk but she is not there yet. She still needs her wheels. Do you think you can help me open her door and hold her purse as I get her wheels from the trunk."

"Does she really have wheels instead of legs?"

"No silly, wheels it what she calls her wheel-chair. She doesn't walk she uses wheels for now" Derek explained to Ben as they walked down the stairs together. Ben ran to Meredith's door and pulled it up before Derek hadn't even reached the car.

"Hi Miss Meredith, I'm Ben. Uncle Derek told me to help you with your bag and he will get your wheels. Do you really have wheels? Why can't you walk? He said that you are learning to walk. Have you always had wheels? Did it hurt when the monster attacked you? Is the monster dead? Where is the monster now? Can I see it? Did it leave any yucky scarring? Can I see?" Ben talked so fast that Meredith had trouble following.

"Ben, Meredith can answer your questions later. Let me help her get into her wheels."

"Oh, that is a really cool wheel-chair. I have ridden in wheel-chairs at the hospital and they were huge. Your's is small. Is it fast? Can we race? I'll run and you in that."  
Meredith started laughing at the charming and curious kid.

"Nice to meet you super-Ben"

"I'm not super-Ben I'm superman… but I am Ben… Uncle Derek, can I be super-Ben the superhero?"

"Of course" Derek said as he lifted Meredith out from the car. He stood there cradling her in his arms and his family was waiting up on the porch. He looked at the porch and realized that Meredith would never get up there by herself. Up on the porch was the swing used on warm evenings looking at the stars.

"John, can you come and bring Meredith's chair up the stairs?" he didn't wait but carried her up the stairs and past his family and put her in the swing.

"We have to find a way for you to get in without using these stairs" he said before kissing her quickly leaving space for his mum and sisters to greet her.

"Welcome Meredith" Mrs. Shepherd leant down and kissed her cheek before giving her a hug.

"Nice being here Mrs. Shepherd. You have a beautiful house."

"Now you stop with the Mrs. Shepherd and call me Carolyn or mum or I won't answer you and I have already thought about the stairs. If you use the door through the garage there are no steps."

"Thank you Mrs… Carolyn, it is very thoughtful of you."

"This is two of Derek's sisters, Kathleen and Nancy. The other two will be here later. John is Kate's husband and Ben whom you already met is her youngest. The rest of the kids we'll sort out later."

"Hi Meredith, nice to finally meet the woman both my brother's speak so much about."

Kate gave her a quick hug.

"Hello Kate, you have an adorable son, super-Ben"

"Thank you, keep thinking that as long as possible. He might be over the top later on."

"Hello Margit" Nancy said.

"Hello Nancy, but please my name is Meredith" Meredith looked at the pretty woman with the hard uninviting eyes. She was really different from her sister, mother and Derek. Nancy had already turned and left.

Derek sat down beside her after bringing their suitcases upstairs.

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah, but Nancy doesn't like me"

"She was/is a very dear friend of Addison and she is always snarky. John came and sat down in a chair across from them and heard the last sentence.

"She hated me when I came around courting Kate and she hasn't stopped yet" he chuckled. "Nice meeting you Meredith and I'm John."

* * *

Carolyn brought out some freshly made lemonade and sat down with them. After an hour or so they began smelling the delicious aroma of roasted chicken. Nancy entered the porch and asked John and Derek to help expanding the table and Carolyn walked back inside with the glasses.

"I'll guess you will stay… here" Nancy said and left Meredith alone on the porch after looking at the wheel-chair parked on the other side of the door.

Ben came running up the stairs after a loud signal had been heard.

"Why are you still out here Miss Meredith? Didn't you hear the dinner signal? We have to wash our hands and go sit down." He had almost disappeared through the door before Meredith stopped him.

"Can you help me? I need my wheels and they are over there where I can't reach them."

Ben walked over to the wheel-chair.

"Do you want me to get Uncle Derek?"

"No, just push the chair over here and put the breaks down, please"

After some testing he loosened the breaks, moved the chair to where Meredith wanted it and locked the breaks again before he took a step back.

"Thank you super-Ben and look now" she said and hoisted herself into the chair in a smooth move.

"Wow you made that look really easy! Is it easy? Can I learn to do that? How long have you had the wheels? Can we race after dinner?"

"Let's see how stuffed you get eating dinner and then we decide. I'll promise I'll race you later"

Meredith said and entered the house for the first time. She followed Ben who stepped into a huge mud room beside the kitchen. The two of them washed their hands and moved along past the kitchen into a dining room. The table was huge and Meredith couldn't move behind it and decided that the seat closest to the door would be best. Ben moved the chair away and took a seat beside her.

Derek walked from the kitchen out on the porch to see if Meredith needed any help but she wasn't there. Nancy who had followed him looked around surprised.

"Where is your blonde charity project, Derek?"

"What did you call her?"

"What do you see in her?" Nancy ignored Derek's question.

"My future" he said walking back inside.

"What? You can't be serious. She is paralyzed Derek!"

"About that, she is partly paralyzed and it wouldn't matter for me if she was paralyzed up to her eyebrows, I would still love her."

"Addison said that she is a wanna be riding on her mother's tail and a gold-digger"

"If she is a gold-digger why on earth didn't she accept my PROPOSAL but wanted you to meet her first?"

"Because she wants to know how much you are worth!"

Nancy and Derek was just outside the dining room not seeing all the family starring in silent at them and Meredith who was sitting just inside the door.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter**** 27**

Derek and Nancy were standing nose to nose, yelling at each other, outside the dinning room.

"Like it would matter to Meredith how much I'm worth. She is the sole beneficiary of the Dr Ellis Grey, her mother and her grandfather is the Dr Harper Avery. I don't believe money ever has or ever will be a problem for her. Damn you, she might even believe that I am a gold-digger."

"Don't worry Miss Meredith" Ben whispered loudly to her, leaning closer to her side.

"Aunt Nancy is the wicked witch of the west but we must let her come, otherwise she might put a bad spell on everyone in the family."

Before Meredith had a chance to respond more people walked through the front door.

"Hi Derek, we could hear you and Nancy down the street so we knew you had arrived on time."

Two men each carrying a child walked into the dining room.

"Hi everyone, sorry we are late" a man carrying an infant said turning to Meredith continuing

"You must be Meredith, the newest victim of Nancy's evil tongue. Don't worry you will be in this along with me and all my wife's brothers-in-law. I'm Matt and this is my youngest offspring Sarah and I'm married to the one crying in the hallway who is Amanda by the way."

"I'm Simon and this is my youngest, Kevin. I'm married to Linda. Can you say hi to Miss Meredith, Kevin?" he asked the little boy who smiled shyly and sent her a little wave.

"Hello Matt, Simon, Kevin and baby Sarah, nice to meet you. Sorry about causing the fight between Derek and Nancy"

"Hush Meredith" Carolyn said "don't ever believe you cause any fighting between the two of those. They pick fights over everything. Nancy will come to her senses sooner or later. It is we that should be sorry."

Derek had walked into the room after greeting Linda and Amanda. He slipped down on the empty chair beside her.

"I'm sorry about Nancy. I'll talk to her tomorrow when she has cooled down."

Derek's last two sisters walked in and greeted Meredith along with them came five more children. One was dressed like Ben in a superman costume and he sat down beside Ben.

"Miss Meredith, this is my cousin and best friend Sam. I'm four days older than him."

"Hello super-Sam" Meredith gave the boy a smile.

"I'm not super-Sam"

"Yes you are" said Ben "I'm super-Ben and we are superheroes. How cool is that?"

"Super cool" Sam said

"I'm a super-woman, right Nana" a little girl in the same age as Sam and Ben pleaded to Carolyn.

"Yes you are sweet-hearth, let's say grace"

They all waited for someone to start, looking at Derek who realized that they wanted him to lead.

"Oh… let's begin… we are thankful for this meal and all our blessings"

"Amen" was heard around the table.

"You are not a super-woman Anna, you are super-Anna"

* * *

Meredith enjoyed the dinner Kate had made and listen to every one talking. The adults were curious but most fun did she have with Ben and Sam. Derek was peppered with question by both adults and the teenagers.

"If we clean our plates we might get extra of the pie" Ben whispered. "Mum usually gives me an extra large piece if I have eaten all my green stuff without complaint."

"Is this good enough?" Meredith asked after using her last piece of bread to wipe the plate clean."

"Cool, I didn't know you could get the plate that clean with bread. It doesn't even need to be washed" Sam added with huge eyes.

Meredith had eaten two large servings along with the men and she felt Nancy's eyes on her. After everyone laid their silverware down and leaned back praising Kate's cooking the kids began to pick up the dishes. Meredith asked Ben and Sam to bring her some large serving bowls, stapled them in her lap and brought them out to the kitchen and placed them on the sink.

"Ben and Sam could you help me out?" she asked the boys when they came in carrying a plate each.

"Yes, how?"

"Sam you can bring a chair over here and then you can rinse all the things that are empty and give them to Ben that hands them to me and I put them in the dishwasher."

* * *

The three of them had their own small assembly line going and the other kids brought in more dirty dishes. The older ones began putting leftovers in plastic containers. Everyone was talking and keeping an eye on Meredith. It took only a couple of minutes before the questions began.

"Miss Meredith have you always been in a wheel-chair?"

"No"

"How old were you when you got your chair?"

"This chair or my first one?"

"Your first? You have had more than one?"

"I was fifteen but then I only used it for when I was going longer stretches. Then when I became a junior in high school I had to use it all the time. And this chair is my fourth chair of this kind. I have an electric one that I use at work, in surgery and stuff and that one can make me stand up. It is really cool. I drive it with my elbows."

"I would like to see that one" a boy who looked like an older clone of Ben said.

"You like whatever it is, just as long as it has to do with electricity Tim" a girl teased him.

"Tim, if you ask your Uncle he can show you some pictures he got in his cell."

The boy bolted along with another boy and were back within minutes with Derek's phone.

"Miss Meredith, me and Susan wonder why you are in a wheel-chair?" a pretty girl with long curly hair asked. The girl with a reddish tone in her brown curly hair standing beside must be Susan.

"I had a tumor growing along my spine and that monster pressed on my nerves and made me loose the ability to walk" Meredith explained

"You said you had a tumor"

"Yeah, your Uncle took it out about twelve weeks ago."

"Oh, why didn't you have anyone take it out when you were fifteen?"

"My mother who was a surgeon, she knew a lot a surgeons and asked around but no one was good enough to do it. It was a very risky surgery and only the best could do it. Like a superhero doctor" she winked at Ben.

"And he said that you are learning to walk again."

"I am, but it will probably not be before Christmas, but I can stand up if I'm in the pool."

"We can take a swim tomorrow if you want to" Sam offered.

"I believe I have to either I want it or not. I have to practice every day and get my strength back into my legs. You can help me if you want and I can race you in the pool."

"You promised to race me with your wheels" Ben put in.

"I can race you there too" Meredith promised.

* * *

When Carolyn and Nancy stepped into the kitchen they were met by a sparkling kitchen and the kids circling Meredith looking at something.

"Oh, that is cool"

"Yeah, you should have seen your uncle when he saw that the first time. We were in the OR and he thought as many do, that I couldn't do anything because of my legs. Our boss knew about my chair and asked me to step up and watch what your uncle had done in a brain and I rolled up and pushed the button to stand. His eyes went huge and he stared at me the whole time. It was my first surgery where I had diagnosed the patient and was allowed to be in the OR."

"Was his eyes like this?" Ben opened his eyes as much as possible starring straight forward.

"Almost" Meredith giggled.

Sam and Susan saw Carolyn and asked.

"Grandma, look how clean everything is, can we have pie now?"

"You have been doing a super job out here. We haven't even heard you argue. Of course you can have pie now"

* * *

"Uncle Derek was your eyes this huge when you saw Miss Meredith in her electrical wheel-chair the first time?"

"Yes and my chin almost hit the floor. I was lucky that I had my mask on" Derek's eyes searched for Meredith's and she felt his hand sliding along her thigh.

"The kids have cleaned all by them self tonight so get the first pieces of pie?" Nancy said when entering the dining room with the first of two huge strawberry pies.

Ben, Sam and Susan said at the same time "Miss Meredith"

"Tradition claims that those who work in the kitchen get the first pieces" Nancy argued.

"Yes and she got us all to pitch in" Tim said "She got Ben and Sam to help rinsing as she put the stuff in the washer and all the others carried plates or put leftovers in the fridge and we all wiped the counters"

"Then maybe I should get you a smaller piece…" Nancy had cut a normal piece of the pie.

"That one is fine, thank you" Meredith said.

Nancy looked like she had swallowed a whole lemon but passed the first plate to Meredith.

"It's the greatest honor you ever get here, the very first piece of the dessert."

"I can share with you" Meredith offered

"No it is all for you and I know that you can eat it all by yourself and I want my dessert later tonight" he kissed her earlobe whispering the last words.

"Where do you put it all? I'm not rude just curious." Amanda asked after Meredith had eaten a second serving of the dessert.

"It might look easy sitting in a chair all day long but it burns calories moving the chair and I work out twice a day right now."

"Why?"

"Derek took out my tumor that's been pressing on my spine and now I have to relearn how to walk again."

"Again?"

"The tumor got too big when I was fifteen and I began having trouble walking. I've been in the chair permanently since I was become a junior in high school."

"What on earth makes you believe that you can be a surgeon?" Nancy asked rudely.

"Whenever someone told me I couldn't do things, I proved them wrong."

"What med school accepted you?"

"Dartmouth"

"She graduated first" Derek added with a proud smile.

"How can you do surgery? Does every other surgeon have to use chairs as well?" Nancy pitched in again.

"No, why should they? I have another chair were I can stand up. I can even be taller than I am."

"But how do you stay sterile?" Linda asked.

"It is the electrical one that Tim is so fascinated of" John said after having listened to Tim and André during dessert.

"I control it with my elbows and I use it in the pit as well"

"How do your patients react to having a doctor, their surgeon in a wheel-chair?" Kate asked with a professional curiosity.

"First they are shocked and don't know what to say and when they are brave enough to ask they have usually already realized that I do everything a walking doctor does."

Derek was passing around his phone showing a picture of Meredith suturing a little girl's forehead in the pit. She was standing in her chair and a man across the room was staring at her with huge eyes.

* * *

"Coffee anyone?" Carolyn asked the people sitting around the dining room.

"No thank you" Meredith answered politely before turning to Kate.

"Would it be good or bad if Ben went for a run at this time in the evening? I don't want to get him so wired up you'll have trouble getting him to sleep."

"Good, it would be very good, then he might sleep past six am tomorrow morning"

"If you'll excuse me, I've got a race to do tonight." Meredith left Derek and his siblings with partners and his mother to have their coffee.

"Well she seems to have more fun with the kids then with us, it must be because she is closer to twelve than to forty" Nancy spit out and added "How old is she?"

"27"

"I want to see this race, does anyone want to join me on the porch?" John asked the others. Everyone followed and found a seat overlooking the garden and part of the driveway used as a ball court.

* * *

"Miss Mer, we start here and the first around the block wins. We have to stay on the sidewalk all the time." Sam and Ben spoke at the same time.

Tim was the starter and Meredith along with Ben, Sam and Anna were racing. They all started and the rest of the kids and some adults hollered and whistled. Meredith kept pace with the kids not to push them to hard and the three of them was running as hard as possible. Halfway down the block Anna fell hitting her knee. The boys kept running but Meredith stopped and scooped the girl up into her lap and now she didn't hold back.

"Hold on tightly" she told the girl and Anna who was crying both from hurting her knee and losing the race held on to the armrests of the chair. The two girls kept gaining on the boys that were battling to win. Meredith and Anna were about twenty meters behind when the spectators saw them again and the race was about two hundred meters more.

"Ben and Sam will be proud tonight" Kate said.

"Don't bet on it" Derek said "I'll even do the dishes for the week if Mer loses this."

"You're on Uncle Derek" Tim yelled.

"I told your mum not to bet on it but if you're game let's have it.

Meredith turned into the driveway a meter behind the boys and the last few meters she pushed past the boys. Anna screamed of joy, her bruised knee forgotten. She hugged and kissed Meredith before jumping down running for the boys.

"I won, won, won. Girls are better than boys. Me and Miss Mer are super-Anna and super-Mer.

"You cheated, you got a ride from Miss Mer. Miss Mer won and gosh does her chair move fast. I want to try it" Tim said.

The kids were all jumping around Meredith when Derek stepped down amongst them. He put an arm around Tim and said

"I told your mother not to bet against me and you did. Now grandma has her very own kitchen slave. I can be nice and let you only endure one day but then you'll owe me."

"She won, she even had Anna in her lap" Tim agreed.

Meredith had caught Anna again asking to see her knee. It needed some washing and a band aid.

"Let's go partner, you have to show me where your grandma keeps the stuff we need" she put Anna back into her lap and started rolling towards the house but Derek stopped her

"Not so fast winner. I've not given you your victory kiss" he leaned in and kissed Anna on her cheek and Meredith a little longer on her lips before mumbling her ear.

"You will be more celebrated tonight"


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Derek walked into the kitchen wearing sweaty clothes.

"Have you been running?" Kate asked in astonishment.

"Yeah, five kilometers" he wiped his neck with a towel he found in the mud room.

"Are you scared to be old little brother" Amanda teased sitting in the window seat nursing Sarah.

"No"

"So spill, what brought out this. I know you eat healthy but running. You always hated running" Linda exclaimed from a stool by the counter.

"Meredith, she needed rehab after her surgery and I didn't want her to go alone so I began accompany her."

"But she can't run"

"No but she either do laps in the pool with Mark or Nick or takes her chair out for some kilometers everyday and I usually run along otherwise Alex join her."

"Who is Nick and Alex? Mark is Mark right?" Linda continued as Meredith joined the others in the kitchen.

"Mark is Mark and my best friend. Nick is my personal trainer at YMCA and Alex is one of my other friends. Derek can you please help me? The chair needs a fresh lining and I can't manage that here and a clean one is upstairs."

"Where do you want to sit?"

"Stool" she pointed towards the empty one beside Linda.

Derek's sisters watched as he put Meredith on the stool before leaving the room with the wheel-chair.

"You can sit on one of those?" Amanda commented.

"Yeah, I can go horse-back riding and I've tried sit ski, my balance are OK. How is Sara this morning?"

"She eats and eats and eats. I feel like a cow."

* * *

Derek returned along with John.

"We talked about going to the beach today and have a barbecue later. Are you guys in?"

"Yeah, we better start making sandwiches then."

"Meredith, what about you and me changing and then helping out down here?"

"Great, I just need to finish my coffee." Derek stepped up behind her hugging her loosely and resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Let's go" she said emptying her cup as she swirled on the stool and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Where are you going Derek" Nancy asked from the door and continued "first you plan going to the beach and then you disappear from preparations."

"Shower, clothes and then we'll help you getting the stuff together" Derek answered without losing his stride. He could feel what Meredith's body did to his and he wanted her naked and wet now.

* * *

Derek and Meredith returned downstairs with flushed cheeks and Derek had a new spring in his step.

"Can we go to YMCA?" Derek asked his sisters and brother-in-laws mingling through the kitchen out onto the porch.

"Why? Our regular is better, fewer people" Nancy answered.

"They have a pool and easier access for Meredith"

"But we won't get a big enough area for all of us, we are twenty five people with lots of stuff and we need a place to barbecue."

"I might be able to help out with that" Meredith said and flipped her phone open.

"Nick, hi… yes I'm fine but I could need some help… yeah… we are on our way to YMCA here at the beach… I promise you can even phone Derek and have him confirm it… we went out for five km this morning… help me now, please. I need a large area at the YMCA for twenty five people, children included and we want to barbecue… thank you, see you when I get back" She listened for another minute before ending and hanging up. She turned to the other in the kitchen and said.

"We have a reserved area on the north side of the children's pool-land."

"What, how did you do that" Nancy asked suspiciously.

"I only called Nick, he made the reservation on-line while we spoke"

"Can anyone do those reservations" Simon asked curiously.

"No, I don't think so" she smiled back.

"So, it's just those that he slept with that get special treatment" Nancy said nastily.

This comment made Meredith double over with laughter. Derek who had been carrying their stuff to their car asked seeing her laughing and Nancy staring at her with an annoyed expression

"What's so funny Mer?" he looked at the others in the kitchen and they looked as curious as him. When Meredith had collected herself she wiped her eyes from tears and looked at Derek but answering Nancy

"If that was Nick's criteria, Derek would have a much better chance making Nick secure an area for us" this made Derek laugh as well before adding "or Mark, I've seen him looking at Mark in Speedos more than once."

"This Nick is… gay" Linda asked before sending Nancy an evil glare. Nancy looked even more bitter.

"Nance, why don't you drop your sour attitude and get to know Meredith, instead of trying to make her into something she clearly isn't. You are only making a fool out of yourself" Carolyn said not being able to listen to her daughter any longer.

"I'll stay home, I've got things to do, can you take the kids and I'll send Mitch over as soon as he arrives" Nancy left the kitchen and the others just kept going as nothing out of ordinary happened. Meredith couldn't take it and followed Nancy out on the back porch were the woman sat down on the stair starring out on the garden.

"Nancy" Meredith said carefully but got no response "please listen" still no response so she continued "I'm sorry if I'm not who you want my brother to date… but him and Addison was over well before he and I even began to have feelings for each other… we had a working friendship and we tolerated each other only… we didn't begin dating until after my surgery… Addison is your friend and I don't know what you know about the divorce… Addison betrayed Derek twice… first with Mark… and then with an even bigger man whore at a gathering at the hospital… Derek was talking to me by the dance floor and she had sex with the radiologist in an exam room… do you think Derek will ever be able to trust her again… they tried after the first time but Addison did this… Derek doesn't even know where she is… they haven't even spoken… you don't have to like me but please come to the beach with us… and I'll keep out of your way" Meredith left Nancy on the stairs and returned to the kitchen.

* * *

"Miss Meredith, can Sam, Anna and I ride in your car?" Ben came running when she entered the room.

"Sure just get out there and wait for us" she smiled at the little boy dressed in superman trunks and a large S on his tee shirt.

"Miss Mer, can we race in the water to?"

"Sure"

"Meredith took a cooler she found beside the fridge and rolled out. Have any place for this Derek?"

"Sure bring it over" Derek answered while Amanda and Kate starred at Meredith.

"He treats her like anyone else. She is not handicapped to him, she just has wheels" Amanda whispered to Kate.

* * *

"Well at the YMCA Meredith rolled up to the reception and told them her name. She was handed a bunch of single day guest cards for them to use the showers and what else they needed during the day.

"Wow, your friend really laid it on thick for you."

"This is just Nick's way. He is a great guy."

The Shepherds were soon enjoying the facility. Some were on the way to the beach, Meredith, Derek, John and Simon brought a bunch of kids to the pool.  
Meredith was dressed in a two piece swimming suit and carried the floating device for her legs. The kids jumped in.

"Is it cold?" she asked them but before they had the chance to answer Derek grabbed her and jumped in. Derek came up for air after letting her go. He looked around but couldn't see her.

"Where is Mer?" he asked and felt someone grab his crotch from behind. When he turned she wasn't there but soon emerged down at the shallow end of the pool.

"I'll get you" he yelled and went for her but she swam around and around never letting him catch her. She even had time to fasten her floats around her leg he realized after a couple of minutes. His brother-in-laws were standing laughing at his pathetic attempts to catch her.

"I could need some help" he growled at them and soon everybody tried to catch everyone. Meredith was the hardest. When Derek finally caught her after she had been corned by both him and the two supermen he stopped and kissed her deeply.

"Want to do your laps or play some more" he asked.

"Let's race the others we can make it a two leg relay."

"OK, hey guys you want to race?"

"Yay, me and dad against you and Mer and Sam with Uncle Simon."

"OK"

"Dr Grey, do you need a starter" one of the lifeguards appeared by the side of the pool.

"Yes please" she looked up at the handsome Viking perched on the poolside, "are you a friend of Nick Armstrong?"

"Yes" he winked "he wants me to report how many laps you do today and make sure you do a complete leg workout.

"Can I bribe you?"

"No and these laps don't count" he said walking over to the shallow end where the other had decided the race should start and end. Derek, Sam and John started. John switched first followed by Derek and Sam in a tie. Meredith sent Simon a smile and took off. After ten meters she was gaining on Ben with every stroke. Twenty meters done and only five left she passed Ben and won by two meters.

"How can you swim that fast without using your legs?" Simon asked trying to catch his breath. "You're not even windy" he complained.

"I guess I forgot to tell you that she could join the Paralympics' swim team" Derek said and kissed her again.

"You two will become really good swimmers if you keep up practicing" Meredith ruffled the two boys wet hair.

* * *

"Dr Grey, I have a lane secured for you" the life guard was back by her side.

"I hate Nick, he even stalks me on vacation" she sighs and lifted herself up on the side.

Derek was quickly by her side picking her up before the life guard did it.

"Are you jealous?" she whispered before kissing him.

"No" he claimed and dropped her in the pool with a laugh.

"I'll get you later" she promised when she surface again.

"Promises, promises, I'll promise to help you with your legs after your sixty laps here. I'll even help you count while having a seat under an umbrella."

"You will regret this" she muttered and took off.

* * *

Half an hour later Carolyn and Linda showed up by Derek's side who was reading a medical journal sitting under an umbrella.

"Were is Meredith?"

"There" he pointed "she has 15 laps to go."

"How many has she done?"

"45"

"She does this how often?"

"Twice or three times a week, usually accompanied by Mark, then she works out the other days of the week and does rehab everyday."

"That is one heavy schedule, how does she manage that with being a resident?"

"She has a reduced working schedule. She is only allowed forty hours per week and the rest of the forty hours are spent studying or in rehab. She couldn't manage otherwise. A normal patient after her kind of surgery has at least six month sick leave before going back on reduced schedule."

"What kind of surgery was it?" Linda asked.

"Spinal, you haven't seen her scar?"

"No"

"She has a scar from her neck following her spine. Take a look when she comes for her next lap." The three of them waited for Meredith to come for her next turn. Carolyn and Linda took a closer look but couldn't really see anything.

"I can't see anything"

"Mark did a beautiful job"

"Mark did that?"

"Yes, we had a team of four surgeons Mark included and three residents working for twenty three hour"

"Why haven't we heard or read anything about it?"

"She has made us all sign a legal gag."

"Why?" Linda asked curiously

"She hates being the centre of attention. People have gossiped about her since high school and she is more than sick about."

"Oh, I see"

"She has about an hour left until her last exercises are done and she has showered. Can we eat then?"

* * *

His mother nodded but sat down beside Derek looking at Meredith and her son, how his eyes sparkled when ever he looked at Meredith. Derek stood up and when she had turned he slipped down into the pool and waited for Meredith to return to the shallow end. The water reached a little above his waist and he let himself sink down to his neck. Meredith came in and he caught her hands bringing her close catching her lips before releasing her legs from her floats and he could press her along his body.

"I love you" he said just enjoying hugging her as she regulated her breathing for a couple of minutes. His fingers traced her scar along the spine.

"I love you" she answered reaching up to catch his lips with hers.

Carolyn sat under Derek's umbrella and watched her son and the woman he clearly loved. They began a set of exercises that clearly practiced Meredith's legs. She began holding a plate in her arms and was supposed to kick and move forward. The movement was tiny but she didn't give up and got a full lap with Derek floating beside her. When she reached the side they hugged and high fived each other before continuing a new exercise that seemed to be walking practice. Meredith had water to her armpits and seemed to stand within Derek's arms he then backed a step and she kind of shuffled towards him. Most of the time she lost her balance and fell into his arms but a couple of times her feet seemed to move her forward. They finished the set with her sitting on the side trying to kick water on Derek. After not so successful tries they ended up in a regular water fight where even the life guard got splashed when he came over to ask something. Derek picked her up and she left wheeling towards the showers inside.

* * *

Later that evening Derek sat down on the beach with Meredith snuggled into his arms. They listen to Derek's sisters' quarrel even Nancy had shown up along with her husband Mitch. Nancy didn't say anything to Meredith and Meredith kept her side. They co-existed and that was enough for Meredith.

"I want you" Derek's lips was tracing down her neck.

"I want you" she whispered back.

"Let's leave, the others can grab the kids" he whispered while slowly caressing her sides.

"PG, Der, keep it PG, Ben is looking" Meredith muttered as she wiggled her butt closer to his groin.

Derek suddenly stood up cradling her in his arms.

"Mum, we'll be heading home. Is that OK?"

"Sure honey, see you at home" Carolyn smiled as her son carried his love towards the car.

"I want you wet and squirming in bed"

"I want to ride you until you scream, but we have to be quiet" Meredith kissed him deeply before letting go of his neck.

"If we hurry we can finish one round before the others return" Derek says speeding off.


	29. Chapter 29

**Next chapter will change the rating from T to M and is also the last chapter of this story**

**~mcanna**

**Chapter 29**

The rest of the week with Derek's family was spent playing with the kids, playing at the beach and playing board games in the evenings with the teens or watching a movie on the big screen. The last night of their visit Derek and his mother sit in the swing on the porch talking about things that still hadn't been said during the week.

"Have you spoken with Addison since the divorce?"

"No, the last word I heard was that Dr Webber wanted to speak with her and she left me fetching a drink at the bar. The next day I heard from Webber that she had taken a personal day off and later at home I found the signed divorce papers."

"So she won't be a problem when you propose to Meredith?"

"I've already proposed and Addison wasn't the problem"

"You have? What was problem?"

"She wanted you to meet her first and if I still want to marry her after this week I am to ask her again."

"Why did she say so? Doesn't she know that you love her?"

"I believe that she is scared to get between me and you guys. She believes she is not lovable when she is partly paralyzed, that she won't be enough for me."

"I believe that you and her are match made in heaven. You are soul mates, friends and lovers."

"Mum" Derek blushed hearing her words.

"Don't be shy son. Love is an important part of marriage as is the other two. What I see between you and Meredith is so much more than you ever had with Addison. Enjoy it, cherish it and work with it and your marriage will survive everything. Does Meredith want children?"

"I think so. I've seen her here with all my nieces and nephews and she is a natural."

"Can she have children?"

"Yes, as far as anyone can, there is no medical reason, she is on birth control pills."

"Your children will be adorable."

"I want a girl that is a mini-Mer."

"When you proposed, did you have a ring?"

"Yes, I have it upstairs but I've decided to wait and propose on the same spot once again. It is where I will begin to build our house as soon as she accepts."

"Can you return you ring or make it into a wedding ring?"

"Yes, but why?"

"I would be honored if you gave her the ring I got from your father."

"She will love that but won't you miss it?"

"No, I will know that the love I have for your father is in your life as well." Carolyn hands Derek a blue velvet box where the ring is already placed. He looks at it and smiles.

* * *

Meredith and Derek are waiting for their flight to be called when they hear how something is breaking and people starting to scream in agony. Meredith is quickly on her way around the corner from where the sound came already attaching her medical ID on her shirt.

"Let me through I'm a doctor" Derek could hear her as he hurried in her wake dragging their bags behind. They didn't have to go far before they saw that a large metal construction supporting a big screen showing advertising had fallen down on some passengers in a waiting area. Meredith rolled up to a shocked security guard and began talking while Derek looked around and saw an airline attendant at her desk making phone calls. He placed their bags with her and said

"Miss, I am Dr Shepherd and Dr Grey over there, we are on our way to Seattle with United. Please let them know that we are here helping out. Make sure we get some more security, a couple of firemen and every medical kit you have around this building. Do you understand?" The shocked woman nodded in response.

"Good" Derek turned and looked at what Meredith had accomplished. She was having some trouble getting the security officer to listen to her.

"Dr Grey, please begin with triage" Derek was in doctor mood and use his voice of authority.

"Sir, are you hurt?" The man shook his head slowly. He was clearly in shock.

"Sir, you need to do what I tell you… I am Dr Shepherd and I and Dr Grey need space to work. You need to clear this area from everyone that isn't hurt. Do you understand?"

The man nodded and finally he got going doing something useful. Derek began along with a couple of other men carefully lift debris in search for the people they could hear but not really see yet. Meredith had begun looking over the people standing around and those that were in shock she put in sitting area by the side with strict orders to stay there along with a friend or relative looking after them. The firefighters arrived at this moment and began helping with moving the metal frame. Meredith and one of the firemen were tending to a woman with a broken arm when Derek called for her.

"Dr Grey, I need you here" she left the woman in the care of the fireman and wheeled over to Derek. The patient had gotten a piece of metal through his thigh and blood was slowly pumping out of the wound.

"You need to cut this metal without removing it from his leg or he might start bleeding" Derek said to a fireman as Meredith stopped by his side.

"Dr Shepherd, what do you need?"

"Have you seen any suture kit in the equipment?"

"I'll take a look and ask the firefighters" Meredith wheeled off and began looking through the boxes when a police office stopped her.

"What do think you are doing? Get out of here. This is for emergency personnel only." He tried to push her chair away.

"Get the hands off my wheels officer. My name is Dr Meredith Grey and I am working here with Dr Shepherd."

"Can you identify your self miss?"

"Look at my damn ID" Meredith almost yelled at him as the officer now clearly embarrassed backed away. "Now if you please could let me do my job and you can go back doing your" Meredith returned to search for a suture kit.

The first EMT team arrived and Meredith called them over, and before beginning to report she asked for a suture kit, one of the EMT picked one out and she pointed towards Derek. After that was done she began reporting and soon all the patients were on their way to a hospital or medical facility. Derek and Meredith looked at each other before getting cleaned up and began searching for their bags. They found them still behind the desk with the same airline attendant.

"Are you still OK, miss?" Derek asked and she smiled grateful at him and nodded

"Yes doctor, thank you doctor" she whispered still a little shocked but not enough to need any medical attention.

"You should talk to some of your fellow friends about this and you will feel better tomorrow. Do go to your doctor if you begin to feel worse or if you still feel like you do now tomorrow."

"I contacted your flight and you are on an open reservation. If you speak with United they should get you on next availably flight, Sir"

"Thank you and good bye" Derek left and walked up to Meredith who had been talking to one of the firefighters.

"Ready to leave Mer?"

"Yes, Derek"

* * *

At United they got their new reservations and it was only twenty minutes until departure and they had to hurry to the gate. The airline attendant wasn't happy receiving a passenger in a wheelchair this late and they were told that they should have been at the gate a lot earlier.

"We are sorry for your inconvenience miss, but Dr Grey and I was helping out with the patients at the crash site. We missed our flight and were rescheduled. If you could just get Dr Grey's wheel-chair down to be loaded into cargo and someone to bring our bags I'll carry Dr Grey aboard."

When the last passenger was seated Derek picked Meredith up into his arms and carried her aboard but in first class next problem occurred. They had not got two adjacent seats. Derek stopped and searched the cabin before turning to the closest steward.

"Dr Grey needs an aisle seat and I want the seat beside her. Can you please either move the gentleman in 8B to 3A or the woman in 3B to 8A? Thank you sir"

Derek stood there waiting craddling Meredith in his arms. A lot of the first class passengers began looking and some of the business class passengers as well. The man in 8B agreed to move after giving them a quick a look. Derek went over and thanked the nice man giving up his seat for Meredith as soon she was seated.

They flight was uneventful but for them renewing their membership in the high mile club.

* * *

After dropping some dirty laundry off at Meredith's house they drove out to the trailer to spend the night, before both had to be back at work starting late. Derek brought out a blanket again and they sat down watching the sunset. They spoke about their week with Derek's family and how much fun they had and how relaxed they felt. When the sky turned all pink and gold he asked her again.

"Do you want to make me the happiest man in universe and marry me?"

"Yes" she answered turning in his arms to watch his brilliant blue eyes. Their lips locked and they felt the same feeling they felt sharing the first kiss so many months ago. He backed away a little still looking at her, smiling his dreamy smile at her look of confusion.

"We have forgotten something" he pulled out the blue velvet box from a pocket and slid the white golden ring on her left hand. He lifted her hand and kissed her finger just above the ring.

"This ring was not the one I had for you a week ago. I had another one bought that I will now have remade as a wedding band if you like this one. My mother got this ring from my father and she gave it to me the last night there. She wanted you to carry it as a reminder that we are as much in love as she and my dad were." Meredith's tears began tracing down her cheeks when she heard this.

"I love you so much Derek and I will always carry this ring as a reminder of our love and my promise to you."

"I want do something for us Meredith. I want to build us a house here on this spot and sit here on the anniversary of this day watching the sunset with you. I love you." He said catching her lips in a soft lingering kiss.

The sky turned dark blue with star glistening above as the two lovers made love to each other where their house would be built.


	30. Chapter 30

**Mature…**

**Chapter 30**

The following months went quickly. Meredith and Derek set the wedding date for Christmas Eve and Derek's family along with their friends was coming to Seattle to celebrate. Derek published an article about Meredith's surgery together with Doc Bill and Dr Carmichael and spent a couple of days away speaking at some medical conferences. Derek got a line of patients wanting him to do their surgery. Meredith continued with excelling in neuro and by Thanksgiving she could stand by herself and slightly shuffle from one chair to another.

On the morning of Christmas Eve Meredith was nervous. Just before leaving the hotel room at the Archfield, were the wedding would be held and their guests stayed, Nick arrived to collect her. He was to walk her down the aisle since she didn't have a father doing it. She was wearing a long sleeved cream white dress that fell straight from under her ribs. It was simple and elegant. Her hair was swept up and fastened with small white and lavender colored flowers. She was also wearing a diamond necklace her grandmother had given her at her eighteen's birthday. Her bouquet contained white daisies, sprigs of lavender and a white gardenia.

"You look stunning, are you ready?" Nick asked her.

"Yes, I think so"

They took the elevator down and Nick parked the wheel-chair outside the double doors leading in to the room. Music was heard and a bellboy opened the doors and Meredith could see all their friends and family facing her. Derek stood at the end of the aisle waiting for her. Nick held his arm out and she slowly stood up and they walked together for the first few meters but then he let go of her arm. She walked the rest of the way by herself. The congregation was stunned. Not all of them had seen her out of her wheels and here she came walking on her own. Her steps were slow and a little unsteady but one step after the other she closed the distance between her and Derek. Derek was openly crying with Mark right at his side wiping tears from his cheeks as well. Derek stepped forward cradling her in his arms when she was a meter away.

"Wow, you can walk"

"Uncle Derek" Ben's voice was heard over of the surprised voices in the audience "you are a real superhero"

Meredith wiped his tears from his cheek before whispering

"You are not allowed to cry on our wedding day"

"Yes, I am, as long as it is happy tears" he responded and added "you are so beautiful. I love you"

"I love you my own superhero" she whispered back before the two of them stepped up to the minister.

Nick pulled two chairs forward and the two sat down. Meredith would be too tired to stand during the service. When they said their vows the two of them stood facing each other

"Meredith, I promise to stand by your side in good times and bad. I promise to always see you and cherish you. You are the one that my world revolves around. You are my soul mate and true love. "

"Derek, I promise to love you in good times and bad, to support you and… walk by your side. You are my soul mate and true love."

They exchanged rings and the minister ended the short ceremony with

"You may kiss the bride" and Derek wrapped her into his arms before dipping her backward kissing her senseless. The sound of applauds and laughs made them break the kiss. Meredith stood up before turning towards their friends and family and reaching for Derek's hand beginning her slow but steady walk down the aisle side by side.

Derek swept her into his arms as soon as they exited the room and captured her lips again.

* * *

Before the reception Meredith and Derek visited Ellis Grey's grave and Meredith walked up and left the gardenia from her bouquet on the headstone.

"Mum, I got married today. This flower is from my bouquet and I walked down the aisle just as you wanted me to. I love you forever" she sent Derek a small smile before continuing "and if the baby I'm carrying is a girl we will name her Elizabeth."

Derek looked at her stunned before grabbing her swirling her around and around.

"I am a father" he cried and laughed at the same time.

* * *

They were dancing after the cake was cut and the speeches done.

"When can we leave?" Derek whispered into her hair

"Why" Meredith turned her head and heated his neck with her breath as she moved her hips closer to his groin.

"I want us to continue this in private" his voice husky sending a tingle along her spine as his hand slowly caressed the same.

"Let's sneak away" she whispered back unaware of the eyes resting on them. Almost everyone kept their eyes on the couple and especially Meredith whenever she stood up or walked.

* * *

They danced towards the door and when Ben ran past a waiter carrying a tray of glasses and dropped it, they grabbed the chance and left. Inside the lift Derek caught her lips and kissed her senseless. Meredith moaned in response and pressed her body closer to his. Derek's hands roamed her body and he could feel her nipples as hard nubs under the white dress. The lift dinged at the top floor and Derek swept her into his arms and walked them into the penthouse suite.

"Put me down" Meredith giggled.

"No" Derek responded "tonight you are mine"

"Yes and you are mine" Meredith kissed him before adding "I need to use the bathroom and than I'm yours."

Derek let her down outside the bathroom"

"Are you OK?" he looked at her before letting go of her. He still had trouble grasping that she walked by herself and that she was pregnant. He thought he got the two best wedding gift from his… wife.

"Yes I am but could you please bring my bag?"

* * *

When Meredith opened the door dressed in a white laced nightgown and robe she was met by the light of candles in the room and roseleaves shattered over the bed. Derek was standing in front of the large window with his jacket draped of a chair his tie dropped on the chair. His white shirt was unbuttoned and his dark dress pant riding love on his hips. At the sound of the opening door he turned and looked at Meredith. Their eyes locked, taking in the appearance of the other. Meredith licked her suddenly dry lips as Derek took a step closer. He held out his hand and she slowly but steady walked the few steps into his arms.

"You look stunning Mrs. Shepherd" Derek murmured as his lips caressed her temple down to her jaw where he lightly bit her.

Meredith dropped her head back offering him her long slim neck in total surrender. Derek growled and swept her up into his arms almost running towards the bed and dropping her on the mattress. She scooted back up to the pillows and looked at him with a smile grazing her lips as he dropped his pants and shirt in a pile on the floor.

Derek crawled up onto the bed and laid down beside her, just looking before his hand began caressing her through the white silk. Meredith's hand slid over his muscled torso eliciting a deep moan from him. When her hands travelled to his crotch and began stoking him he quickly grabbed them and locked them above her head.

"Not so fast my love" he whispered against her collarbone, licking a path towards her breast.

Meredith tried to make herself free from his tight hold of her hands but he let his lips catch her nipple sucking on it slowly before licking his way to the other and repeating his ministrations. Meredith could feel her body first tense up before going limp just enjoying the feeling he elicited in her. A deep moan escaped her throat. Derek let his lips push the silk down her body and when reaching her hips he sat up slowly pulling the silk off as she lifted her hips slightly. The candle lit room sent shadows wandering over her body and he had never seen such beautiful sight before. Quickly he let his black boxer briefs drop onto the floor before lifting her leg kissing his way up towards her core. When his lips kissed the soft inside of her thigh she moved her legs further apart by her own will.

Derek licked her with a flat tongue and she grabbed the linen to anchor her. He opened her up and admired the pink folds glistering with her pre cum.

"You are so wet" he murmured as he licked her and sucked on her clit.

He pushed a finger into her core and she lifted her hips in response meeting his thrust. When he added a second and third finger she began twisting and screaming his name

"Der… Derek… faster… plea… please"

He could feel her walls clamping down on his fingers and he sucked harder on her clit. Suddenly she lifted her legs and digged her heels into his shoulder blades lifting her hips and spreading her knees as far as possible. He grabbed her butt cheeks and pushed her up towards his mouth as he felt her walls collapse. Her legs relaxed and he licked her cum before gliding up her body letting her taste herself on his lips.

"Mmmm… I love you" she moaned.

A quick push turned him to his back and she followed into the roll lying on top. His dick pushed into her hip and she slid down his torso just stopping to lick and bite his nipple as he moaned. Her lips moved down to his cock where she stopped to blow on the wet tip. She sat up beside him and let her lips slowly caress the length from the bottom to the sensitive tip. Her tongue tasted the pre cum seeping out. When she began sucking on just the tip he grabbed her hair and pulled it away to be able to see her. His hip pushed slightly up and she let him further into her mouth until he could feel himself hitting the back of her throat. She sucked hard and massaged his sack as she let out a moan, that vibrated in her bringing him to the brink of release.

"Mer… please… I… "he pulled at her hair "want to come inside of you"

Meredith let go of his cock with a last lick before straddling his hips. She leaned down letting him taste himself on her lips. When she sat back up he helped lifting a little to position her over his cock before she suddenly let herself be speared on his hard member. The two of them moaned in response to the feeling. She sat still for a minute to adjust to his size before she began rocking. She was not yet strong enough to ride him for long but the rocking prolonged the built towards the climax. When her legs where tired they rolled over with Derek still inside. Meredith lifted her legs and wrapped them around his waist. He grabbed a pillowed and pushed it under her butt before resuming the thrusts.

"Harder… I want harder" Meredith screamed and he slammed down into her tight core. To get even deeper he grabbed her legs and placed them on his shoulders as he kept the pace up. He could feel her walls tightening and her screams urging him on. With a final push he climaxed and sprayed her walls with his hot seed as she climaxed with a deep moan.

Derek fell onto her rolling them to their side, facing each other, him still inside.

"Are you alright? Are the baby OK?" he asked slipping out and caressing her flat stomach.

"Yes, I love you Dr Derek Shepherd"

"I love you, Dr Meredith Grey-Shepherd"

**The End**

**Thank you for reading and reviewing. You all made this funny to write and publish.**

**~mcanna  
**


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